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ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 

A  Prince  in  Israel 


^Jfr/t^X^r^^ 


Alpheus  W.  Wilson 

A  PRINCE  IN  ISRAEL 


By  Carlton  Banner  Harris 

Editor  of 
The  Baltimore  Southern  Methodist 


BOARD  OF  CHURCH  EXTENSION 

OF    THE 

METHODIST  EPISCOPAL  CHURCH,  SOUTH 
LOUISVILLE,  KY. 


THE    rRANKLlN    FRINTIN*   COMPANY 

INCORPORATED 

LOUISVILLE,    KENTUCKV 


DEDICATION. 
To  the  memory  of  my  father, 
Rev.  David  Harris,  who  was  an 
itinerant  preacher  in  the  Balti- 
more Conference  from  1860  to 
1868,  the  latchet  of  whose  shoes 
his  son  is  not  worthy  to  unloose. 


f^ifC/TK 


CONTENTS 

Foreword xi 

Introduction xiii 

CHAPTER  I. 
Ancestry 1 

CHAPTER  II. 
Earlier  Years 16 

CHAPTER  III. 
Trials  and  Triumphs  of  the  Itineracy 31 

CHAPTER  IV. 
Perilous  Days  of  the  Sixties  and  Southern  Methodism 

IN  Baltimore 43 

CHAPTER  V. 
The  Law  and  the  Gospel 62 

CHAPTER  VI. 
Called  to  be  Secretary  of  the  Board  of  Missions 69 

CHAPTER  VII. 
The  Episcopacy  and  Its  Responsibilities 91 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
The  Holy  Land  and  the  Orient 115 

CHAPTER  IX. 
The  Bishop  As  a  Preacher 137- 

CHAPTER  X. 
The  Bishop  As  a  Man:    His  Mental  Habits  and  Powers.  ...  152 

CHAPTER  XI. 
The  Bishop  As  a  Man:    His  Home  Life  and  Social  Qualities  .  159 

CHAPTER  XII. 
Honors  and  Unofficial  Events 179 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
The  Fall  of  the  Earthly  Temple 189 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Face  Page 
Bishop  Alpheus  Waters  Wilson  {Frontispiece) .  .Opposite  title  page 

Alpheus  W.  Wilson  (1850) 10 

Rev.  Alpheus  W.  Wilson  (1853) 10 

Rev.  Alpheus  W.  Wilson  (1854) 10 

Rev.  Alpheus  W.  Wilson  (1855) 10 

Mrs.  Cornelia  Rowland  Wilson,  Mother  of  Bishop  Wilson ...  26 

Susan  Bond  Lipscomb  (1850).     (Later  Mrs.  A.  W.  Wilson) ...  26 

Susan  Bond  Lipscomb  (1853).     (Later  Mrs.  A.  W.  Wilson) ...  26 

Susan  Bond  Lipscomb  (1854).     (Later  Mrs.  A.  W.  Wilson) ...  26 

Mary  Lipscomb,  Sister  of  Mrs.  Wilson    (Mrs.  Thomas  Fitz- 
gerald)    42 

Rev.  and  Mrs.  Philip  Lipscomb,  Parents  of  Mrs.  Wilson.  ...  42 

Rev.  and  Mrs.  A.  W.  Wilson  (1857) — the  year  of  their  mar- 
riage    42 

A.  W.  Wilson  and  His  Little  Sister-in-law,  Nannie  Lips- 
comb    42> 

Hon.  Thomas  Wilson,  Grandfather  of  Bishop  Wilson 58 

Rev.  Norval  Wilson,  Father  of  Bishop  Wilson 58 

Sarah  Louise  Wilson,  Sister  of  Bishop  Wilson 58 

Cornelia  Rowland,  wife  of  Captain  Daniel  Howland,  Grand- 
mother of  Bishop  Wilson 58 

Bishop  Wilson's  Home — the  gift  of  Governor  and  Mrs.  E.  E. 

Jackson  in  1902 74 

Bishop  Wilson's  Study — after  he  sent  his  books  to  Emorj'^ 

University  in  1915 90 

ix 


House  on  Charles  Circuit,  where  Bishop  Wilson  boarded 

during  the  first  year  of  his  ministry 106 

Bishop  and  Mrs.   Wilson,  at  McTyeire  Home,   Shanghai, 

China  (1901) 106 

Bishop  AND  Mrs.  Wilson,  at  a  railway  station  in  Japan  (1907)  122 

Bishop  and  Mrs.  Wilson,  in  Japan  (1907) 122 

St.  Paul's  M.  E.  Church,  South,  Baltimore,  Md 138- 

Trinity  M.  E.  Church,  South,  Baltimore,  Md 154 

Central  M.  E.  Church,  South,  Baltimore,  Md 170 

St.  John's  Emmanuel  M.  E.  Church,  South,  Baltimore,  Md.  .  186 

Kate  Lear,  cook  in  Bishop  Wilson's  household  for  forty  years .  .  202 


FOREWORD. 

This  volume  is  the  outgrowth  of  an  idea  of  Dr.  W.  F. 
McMurr>%  Corresponding  Secretary  of  the  Board  of 
Church  Extension.  Dr.  McMurry  suggested  that  the 
author  expand  his  article  entitled,  "The  Late  Alpheus  W. 
Wilson,"  which  appeared  in  the  April  number  of  the 
Methodist  Review,  to  be  published  in  connection  with  the 
Bishop's  Lectures  on  the  Atonement,  for  use  of  the  Board 
of  Church  Extension.  The  work  under  the  kindly  en- 
couragement of  the  Secretary  has  grown  to  its  present 
dimensions.  It  is  not,  however,  designed  by  any  means, 
to  take  the  place  of  a  larger  and  critical  life  of  Alpheus  W. 
Wilson  covering  more  fully  his  work  as  bishop,  which 
treatment  in  this  volume  is  necessarily  meager  because  of 
the  lack  of  time  and  opportunity  to  secure  the  proper 
data.  It  should  rather  contribute  to  a  larger  work  that 
may  appear  later  from  an  abler  pen,  for  it  has  gathered  and 
put  in  permanent  form  important  information  that  will 
likely  be  of  service  to  the  future  biographer.  The  aim  of 
the  author  has  been  to  make  this  a  personal  rather  than 
an  official  life  of  the  Bishop  that  its  pages  may  reflect  his 
personality  and  character.  In  conformity  to  this  aim 
many  letters  and  other  products  of  the  brain  of  the  Bishop 
have  been  used. 

The  author  has  done  the  best  he  could  in  the  prepara'- 
tion  of  the  book  in  the  limited  time  allotted  him,  and  it  is 
sent  forth  with  the  prayer  that  the  life  of  the  great  Bishop 
may  be  helpful  to  many  other  lives. 

Grateful  acknowledgments  are  hereby  expressed  to 
all  who  have  aided  in  the  making  of  the  book,  especially 
to  the  committee  of  supervision,  and  to  Dr.  F.  J.  Pretty- 
man  and  Mr.  CM.  Armstrong  for  valuable  materials  and 
helpful  suggestions,  and  to  Miss  Nina  Wilson  without 
whose  sympathy  and  co-operation  this  volume  would  not 
have  been  possible. 
Baltimore,  December,  1917.  The  Author. 


INTRODUCTION. 
Bishop  Warren  A.  Candler. 

The  best  gift  of  God  to  any  church,  or  nation,  is  a 
great  and  good  man. 

In  the  gift  of  Moses  to  enslaved  Israel  was  bound  up 
deliverance  from  bondage,  the  Mosaic  law,  and  the  Pen- 
tateuch. 

In  Paid  God  bestowed  on  the  Church  of  the  first 
century  the  missions  to  the  Gentiles,  the  world-wide 
propagation  of  the  Gospel,  and  two  thirds  of  the  books  of 
the  New  Testament. 

When  Alpheus  Waters  Wilson  was  given  to  Methodism 
the  church  received  an  apostolic  Christian,  a  great  ad- 
ministrator, a  wise  counselor,  and  a  Pauline  preacher. 

In  the  days  of  his  strength  he  was  considered  by  many 
the  greatest  preacher  in  America,  if  not  in  the  world. 
In  this  estimate  of  him  the  writer  of  this  introduction 
deliberately  concurs,  after  having  heard  most  of  the  great 
preachers  of  the  world  who  have  lived  during  the  last 
forty  years. 

Bishop  Wilson  was  a  great  preacher  because  he  was  a 
great  believer.  The  Psalmist  said  "I  believed,  therefore 
have  I  spoken"  (Psalms  cxvi:  13),  and  St.  Paul  quoting 
the  utterance  of  the  Hebrew  singer,  says,  "We  also  be- 
lieve, and  therefore  speak."  (2  Corinthians  iv:  13.) 
"Having  the  same  spirit  of  faith,"  Bishop  Wilson  be- 
lieved, and  therefore  preached  with  power.  His  spiritual 
insight  into  the  meaning  of  the  oracles  of  God  was  deep 
and  his  beHef  in  the  Gospel  of  Christ  was  confident. 


Hence  he  spoke  with  authority,  and  not  with  the  hesitating 
manner  and  qualified  utterance  of  an  academic  scribe. 

For  the  -wTitings  of  St.  John  and  St.  Paul  he  had  special 
fondness,  and  his  grasp  of  the  Pauline  Epistles  was  un- 
equaled  by  any  man  of  his  day.  In  the  epistles  to  the 
Romans,  the  Colossians,  and  the  Ephesians  he  saw  fully 
set  forth  the  whole  scheme  of  redemption  for  the  lost  race 
of  man,  and  the  rapturous  vision  enthralled  his  mind  and 
heart. 

Subjects  less  important  never  engaged  his  attention  in 
the  pulpit.  For  that  type  of  preaching  which  finds  its 
themes  in  current  topics  he  had  no  respect.  Using  a 
portion  of  Scripture  as  a  mere  motto,  or  sermon  caption, 
he  regarded  as  handling  the  word  of  God  deceitfully.  He 
did  not  preach  to  entertain,  but  to  edify  and  save.  He 
was  not,  therefore,  what  some  would  call  "a.  popular 
preacher."  For  that  role  he  was  far  too  serious  and 
earnest  and  sincere.  He  used  few  illustrations  outside 
the  Scriptures,  and  repeated  no  pathetic  stories  to  excite 
the  emotions  of  those  to  whom  he  preached.  Neverthe- 
less he  mightily  moved  vast  audiences  as  he  proclaimed  the 
Gospel  "with  the  Holy  Ghost  sent  down  from  heaven." 
The  supernatural  in  his  preaching  eclipsed  the  natural. 
The  words  with  which  St.  Luke  describes  Apollos  fitly 
describes  Bishop  Wilson :  "An  eloquent  man  and  mighty 
in  the  Scriptures."     (Acts  xviii:  24.) 

He  searched  the  Scriptures  with  the  most  studious 
care.  His  knowledge  of  the  New  Testament  in  Greek  was 
as  minute  as  his  acquaintance  with  the  King  James 
Version,  although  he  made  no  show  of  scholarship  and  no 
claim  of  critical  learning.  He  studied  the  Word  of  God 
that  he  might  know  the  mind  of  the  Spirit,  not  that  he 
might  win  the  admiration  of  men. 

In  view  of  his  habit  of  unwear>ang  study  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, it  might  be  supposed  that  he  was  not  concerned  to 

xiv 


read  other  books;  but  such  was  not  the  case.  He  was  a 
rapid,  as  well  as  a  careful,  reader,  and  he  seemed  to  have 
read  everything  worth  reading.  He  was  often  in  my 
home  during  the  later  years  of  his  life,  and  the  extent  of 
his  knowledge  of  books  amazed  me.  I  tried  to  find  for 
him  books  he  had  never  read,  but  seldom  was  I  successful 
in  the  effort.  On  one  occasion  I  thought  I  had  found  one 
he  had  not  seen,  or  even  heard  of.  It  was  a  book  given 
me  in  London  by  Charles  Candler,  and  written  by  his 
brother,  Edmund  Candler,  a  missionary  of  the  English 
Church  in  India.  The  author  of  the  book  had  gone  with 
the  British  Expedition  under  Younghusband  to  Thibet, 
and  from  the  experiences  and  explorations  of  that  trip 
wrote  a  most  fascinating  narrative  entitled  "The  Un- 
veiling of  Lhassa. "  It  was  this  volume  which  I  had  laid 
away  for  Bishop  Wilson,  believing  I  had  at  last  found 
something  which  he  had  not  read.  On  his  next  visit  to 
our  home,  as  we  were  sitting  in  the  library,  I  said  "  I  have 
found  something  now  which  you  never  saw."  "What  is 
it?"  he  asked.  I  answered  "It  is  'The  Unveihng  of 
Lhassa'  by  Edmund  Candler,  a  British  kinsman  of  mine. " 
With  a  smile,  he  said  "I  found  it  at  Bombay  when  it  was 
first  published,  and  read  it  on  my  way  home. "  Then  he 
proceeded  to  tell  me  more  about  Edmund  Candler  and  the 
expedition  to  Thibet  than  the  book  revealed  and  far  mor§ 
than  I  had  ever  known.  His  was  the  fullest  mind  with 
which  I  ever  came  in  contact.  He  was  familiar  with 
philosophy,  history,  science,  and  even  much  light  litera- 
ture. But  with  him  all  knowledge  was  subordinate  to  the 
knov/ledge  of  God.  During  a  long  life  he  drew  "all  his 
cares  and  studies  that  way. " 

Profoimd  religious  convictions.  Scriptural  principles, 
and  apostolic  precedents  recorded  in  the  New  Testament 
permeated  and  controlled  his  great  work  as  an  administra- 
tor of  the  work  of  the  Church,  whether  he  was  engaged  in 
the  pastoral    office,  the  Secretaryship  of  the  Board  of 

XV 


Missions,  or  the  episcopacy.  It  was  chiefly  this  element 
in  his  Hfe  which  made  him  so  great  in  the  exercise  of 
administrative  functions.  While  he  had  a  mind  of 
statesmanlike  mould,  and  possessed  judicial  qualities  of 
a  high  order,  it  is  not  to  these  alone,  or  chiefly,  we  must 
look  to  find  the  secret  of  his  success  as  an  executive  offlcer 
of  the  Church;  he  fashioned  his  methods  of  administration 
according  to  the  "pattern  shown  him  on  the  Mount. " 

It  was  by  the  apostolic  character  of  his  appeals  as 
Missionary  Secretary  he  aroused  the  conscience  of  the 
whole  Church  while  he  was  engaged  in  that  work.  His 
addresses  were  not  concerned  with  detailing  the  customs 
and  describing  costumes  of  the  heathen  world  "as  the 
manner  of  some  is. "  He  laid  upon  the  hearts  of  men  the 
missionary  obHgation  as  it  arises  from  their  relation  to 
Christ  and  our  Lord's  work  of  redemption  for  a  ruined 
world.  He  rested  the  case  on  eternal  things,  and  caused 
those  who  heard  him  to  feel  that  the  refusal  to  give  the 
Gospel  to  the  nations  who  have  it  not  is  treason  to  Christ 
and  inhumanity  to  mankind.  With  such  deep  truths  he 
broke  up  the  fallow  ground  of  the  Church,  and  the  harvest 
which  has  followed  is  due  more  to  his  labors  than  to  any 
other  man.  The  missionary  cause  was  dear  to  his  heart 
because  the  salvation  of  the  world  is  dear  to  the  heart  of 
Christ ;  and  by  his  masterful  presentations  of  it  he  made  it 
dear  to  others  who  otherwise  might  have  been  indifferent 
to  it  No  American  Church  has  ever  had  a  greater 
Secretary  of  Foreign  Missions. 

From  his  work  as  Missionary  Secretary  he  was  called 
to  the  office  of  a  bishop,  and  as  a  general  superintendent 
of  the  Church  he  manifested  the  same  apostolic  zeal  and 
employed  the  same  apostolic  methods.  What  a  bishop  he 
was!  What  skiU  he  displayed  in  assigning  the  preachers 
of  the  Conferences  to  their  fields  of  labor!  With  what 
wisdom  did  he  counsel  the  men  on  their  admittance  into 
"full  connection"   as  itinerant  preachers!    With  what 


XVI 


power  did  he  preach  before  the  Annual  and  General  Con- 
ferences !    Shall  we  ever  see  his  like  again  ? 

In  the  meetings  of  the  Bishops  his  services  were  in- 
valuable. When  he  was  present  his  colleagues  felt  more 
safe  in  their  conclusions,  and  when  he  was  absent  there  was 
none  to  take  his  place.  If  the  question  of  his  superan- 
nuation had  been  submitted  to  the  bishops  at  the  General 
Conference  of  1914,  when  he  was  retired,  they  would  have 
voted  imanimously  to  retain  him  "on  the  effective  list," 
and  after  his  superannuation  they  still  deferred  to  his 
judgment  and  relied  on  his  wise  counsels.  He  was  always 
a  man  of  great  heart,  but  in  his  latter  years  he  became  in- 
creasingly tender  and  affectionate,  especially  towards  his 
colleagues  in  the  episcopal  office.  When  he  died  he  was 
the  best  beloved  man  among  them,  and  deserved  to  be. 

No  multiplication  of  words  can  set  forth  adequately 
the  varied  excellencies  and  remarkable  ability  of  this  ex- 
traordinary man.  In  goodness  he  was  great  and  in 
greatness  he  was  good. 

This  biography  is  an  attempt  to  tell  in  outline  the 
story  of  his  wonderful  life.  It  is  something  more  than 
interesting.  It  is  inspiring.  It  is  the  record  of  a  life 
protracted  through  more  than  fourscore  years  glorified 
by  apostolic  faith  and  abounding  in  apostolic  labors. 
It  cannot  fail  to  bless  those  who  read  it. 

After  EHsha,  the  prophet,  had  been  long  dead,  wheii 
one  who  was  buried  in  his  sepulchre  was  let  down  and 
touched  the  prophets  bones,  he  "revived  and  stood  up 
on  his  feet."  (2  Kings  xiii:20).  In  like  manner  this 
account  of  our  great  prophet's  career  must  surely  quicken 
into  new  life  our  faith  and  zeal. 


xvu 


CHAPTER  I. 
Ancestry. 

Alpheus  Waters  Wilson,  the  son  of  Rev.  Norval 
and  Cornelia  Howland  Wilson,  was  born  in  Balti- 
more, February  5,  1834. 

His  ancestors  on  his  father's  side  were  Scotch- 
Irish,  stanch  Presbyterians  who  clung  to  the  doc- 
trines of  Calvinism  with  a  tenacity  characteristic  of 
that  sturdy  people.  His  grandfather  was  Thomas 
Wilson,  of  Morgan  town.  West  Virginia,  then  a  part 
of  Virginia;  a  lawyer  of  acknowledged  ability,  who 
not  only  met  the  demands  of  a  large  practice,  but 
served  his  state  in  the  Legislature  and  in  Congress 
with  distinction  and  honor. 

To  Thomas  and  his  wife  Mary  were  bom  six  sons 
and  three  daughters.  One  of  the  sons,  Edgar,  be- 
came a  resident  of  Minneapolis,  Minnesota,  and  was 
elected  from  that  state  to  the  United  States  Senate. 
Hon.  Edgar  Wilson  had  a  son  who  became  a  member 
of  Congress,  showing  that  political  life  was  not  with- 
out a  fascination  for  the  Wilson  family. 

Religion  had  a  chief  place  in  the  lives  of  those  of 
the  Wilson  lineage,  as  is  evident  from  their  history. 
A  son  of  the  home,  Norval,  became  an  influential 
minister.  A  daughter,  Louisa,  married  Rev.  Robert 
Lowrie,  a  missionary  to  India.  Though  she  died 
shortly  after  reaching  that  land,  she  has  the  honor 
of  having  been  recognized  by  her  denomination  as 
the  first  missionary  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  to 
the  women  of  India.     Many  other  facts  recorded  in 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


this  volume  will  show  how  strongly  entrenched  were 
the  principles  of  reUgion  in  the  nature  of  the  Wilsons. 

Thomas  Wilson  was  the  owner  of  more  than  a 
quarter  of  a  million  acres  of  unimproved  land  granted 
to  him  by  patent  1775-6  in  Virginia  and  that  part 
of  the  state  which  afterwards  became  West  Virginia. 
These  tracts  were  in  seven  groups  covering  some  of 
the  most  valuable  timber  and  mineral  land  in  those 
states,  as  will  be  seen  from  their  locations  which  are 
as  follows : 

Group  1.  41,000  acres  in  Bath  County,  Virginia, 
now  partly  in  other  counties. 

Group  2.  30,000  acres  in  Bath  County,  now 
mostly  in  Alleghany  County. 

Group  3.  44,000  acres  in  Bath  County,  now  in 
Pocahontas  County,  West  Virginia,  on  the  Green- 
brier River. 

Group  4.  35,000  acres  in  Bath  County,  now  in 
Pocahontas  County  on  the  Allegheny  mountains. 

Group  5.  4,000  acres  in  Randolph  County,  West 
Virginia,  now  in  Upshur  County,  West  Virginia. 

Group  6.  57,000  acres  in  Wythe  County,  Vir- 
ginia, now  in  McDowell  County,  West  Virginia,  but 
from  1798  to  1858  in  Tazewell  County,  Virginia. 

Group  7.  60,000  acres  in  Randolph  Coimty  on 
Rich  Mountain. 

The  subdivision  of  old  counties,  too  large  for 
development,  for  the  formation  of  new  counties  and 
the  establishment  of  the  state  of  West  Virginia 
naturally  affected  the  names  of  the  geographical 
boundaries  of  these  tracts. 

It  seems  that  Thomas  Wilson,  a  gentleman  of 
means,  culture  and  learning,  dividing  his  time  be- 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


tween  his  profession  and  politics,  gave  but  scant  at- 
tention to  his  vast  tracts  which  were  not  regarded  at 
that  time  to  be  of  special  value,  for  in  1816  four  of  the 
groups  were  forfeited  to  the  state  for  non-payment  of 
taxes,  and  ten  years  previous  to  that  time  groups  3 
and  4  had  been  sold  by  the  United  States  Marshal  in 
the  name  of  Thomas  Wilson  for  non-payment  by  him 
of  a  direct  tax  imposed  by  an  act  of  Congress.  Other 
groups  slipped  through  his  hands.  It  is  probable 
that  he  did  not  regard  them  worth  the  trouble  and 
expense  involved  in  their  retention. 

His  children  must  have  shared  the  opinion  of 
their  father;  at  any  rate  they  slept  upon  their  rights 
for  years,  for  much  of  this  land  could  have  been  re- 
deemed by  a  proper  settlement  with  the  state.  If 
these  property  interests  had  been  properly  looked 
after  and  safeguarded,  they  would  have  yielded  to 
their  possessors  enormous  wealth.  Thus  Bishop 
Wilson  escaped  having  been  born  rich.  Whether  the 
riches  of  his  great  life  would  have  been  given  to  the 
church  if  he  had  been  born  to  large  wealth  with 
affluent  surroundings  no  one  can  say.  Circum- 
stances attendant  upon  wealth  do  not  usually  turn 
the  soul  toward  God.  There  may  have  been  a  pro- 
vidence in  all  this.  Bishop  Wilson's  life  has  been 
worth  immeasurably  more  to  the  cause  of  God  and 
the  largest  welfare  of  His  creatures  than  incalculable 
material  wealth  even  wisely  used.  God  places  the 
highest  value  upon  Spirit-filled  personality. 

Bishop  Wilson  sometimes  spoke  of  his  rights  in 
those  Virginia  and  West  Virginia  lands,  but  they  gave 
him  little  concern.  Eighteen  or  twenty  years  ago 
at  the  request  of  his  sister,  he  gave  a  relative  the 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


power  of  attorney  to  take  such  steps  as  might  be 
deemed  necessary  to  recover  as  much  of  the  land  as 
could  be  reclaimed  under  law.  But  because  of  the 
heavy  expense  of  litigation  and  other  difficulties,  but 
little  has  been  done.  Indeed,  so  far  as  is  known,  the 
Bishop  did  nothing  to  realize  on  the  3,000  acres  of 
unimproved  land  in  Calhoun  County,  West  Virginia, 
left  him,  with  Henrj'-'s  Commentaries  and  Dodd- 
ridge's Paraphrases,  by  his  father's  will.  He  was 
too  much  interested  in  the  deep  things  of  God  to 
allow  his  affections  to  be  centered  even  temporarily 
on  the  things  of  time  and  sense.  He  may  have  laid 
himself  open  to  the  charge  of  improvidence,  but  his 
life  moved  on  a  level  far  removed  from  material 
values. 

Thomas  Wilson  and  his  wife  sleep  in  a  cemetery 
at  Morgan  town.  West  Virginia.  Their  tombstones 
are  disintegrating  and  will  not  be  likely  to  stand 
many  more  years  the  ravages  of  time.  One  stone 
bears  the  inscription : 

"Sacred  to  the  memory  of  Thos.  Wilson,  Esq., 
who  departed  this  life  Jan.  24,  1820,  aged  60  yrs. 
4  mos.  and  15  days. 

"His  was  a  life  active,  useful  and  regulated  by 
a  uniform  principle  of  integrity. 

"Withal  an  humble  reliance  in  the  sacrifice  of 

Christ,  he  was  prepared  to leaving 

behind endeared  to  recollections  of 

mourning  friends. 

"Being  dead,  he  yet  speaketh. " 

(The  dashes  indicate  illegible  words.) 

On  the  other  stone  are  these  lines : 

"Sacred  to  the  memory  of  Mrs.  Mary  Wilson, 
consort  of  Thomas  Wilson,  who  departed  this 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


life  April  22,  A.  D.  1817,  aged  40  yrs.  2  mos.  8 
days. 

"She  lived  amiable,  affectionate  and  univer- 
sally esteemed;  she  died  regretted  by  others,  yet 
herself  resigned  and  at  peace  with  God. 

"Let  me  die  the  death  of  the  righteous,  and 
let  my  last  end  be  like  hers. " 

Thomas  Wilson's  son  Norval,  the  Bishop's 
father,  was  the  first  Methodist  of  the  Wilson  line. 
He  was  born  in  1802,  and  was  converted  at  a  camp 
meeting  in  1819.  In  independence,  courage,  and 
reverence  for  the  Word  of  God,  he  was  a  worthy  son 
of  noble  sires.  For  a  time  he  studied  law  with  a 
partially  formed  purpose  to  follow  the  profession  of 
his  father.  But  God's  Spirit  unmistakably  in- 
dicated his  call  to  the  ministry.  This  brief  record  in 
his  diary  reveals  the  inner  workings  of  his  heart  at 
that  critical  period,  and  his  fixed  desire  to  do  God's 
will: 

Jan.  9th,  1821.  With  the  new  year  events  have 
transpired  to  me  of  the  utmost  consequence.  Having  been 
much  exercised  about  working  in  the  Lord's  vineyard,  I  yet 
saw  no  way  for  me  to  proceed.  I  therefore  judged  it  best 
to  resign  m^^self  into  the  hand  of  the  Lord,  being  assured 
that  if  He  designed  I  should  preach.  He  would  clear  my  way. 
Accordingly  I  received  a  long  letter  from  Daniel  Hitt,  the 
presiding  elder  of  the  Monongahela  District,  on  the  27th 
of  December,  1820,  proving  conclusively  that  it  was  my 
duty  to  engage  immediately  in  the  work  of  the  ministry.* 
I  gave  it  to  my  father,  asking  him  for  his  opinion.  At 
first  he  made  objections  from  my  3'outh,  but  eventually 


*An  anachronism  appears  here.  The  entry  in  the  diary  was  made  January  9, 
1S21,  nearly  a  year  after  the  death  of  his  father  according  to  a  typewritten  copy 
of  the  inscription  on  the  tombstone,  which  was  placed  in  the  author's  hands,  with 
other  material  for  this  volume.  It  is  possible  that  the  transcriber  did  not  cor- 
rectly decipher  the  date  on  the  partially  decayed  stone. 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


remarked  that  if  I  conceived  it  to  be  my  duty,  he  would 
not  object.  About  the  first  of  March  I  shall  go  to  Balti- 
more to  receive  an  appointment. 

His  first  sermon  was  from  the  text,  "Prepare  to 
meet  thy  God. "  This  Scripture  was  the  keynote  of 
his  life  and  labors.  His  chief  care  was  to  be  ready  to 
meet  his  Lord,  and  never  did  his  voice  falter  in  warn- 
ing men  of  the  danger  of  being  unprepared.  He  was 
ordained  a  Deacon  by  Bishop  George,  April  20,  1823; 
and  an  Elder  by  Bishop  Soule,  April  10,  1825.  He 
became  one  of  the  ablest  and  most  influential  ministers 
of  the  Baltimore  Conference,  and  was  a  potent  force 
in  molding  the  character  of  Methodism  in  Baltimore. 
He  was  appointed  a  presiding  elder  at  twenty-six, 
and  at  the  same  age  was  elected  a  delegate  to  the 
General  Conference.  It  is  beUeved  that  the  Balti- 
more Conference  can  furnish  no  parallel  in  her  his- 
tory in  conferring  such  a  double  honor  on  so  young  a 
preacher. 

He  was  a  commanding  figure  in  the  Baltimore 
Conference  of  1861,  and  wrote  the  resolutions  adopted 
by  that  body  severing  its  relations  with  the  General 
Conference  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and 
disclaiming  its  authority.  He  was  President  of  the 
Conference  held  in  Bridgewater,  Va.,  in  1864,  and  of 
the  memorable  Conference  held  in  Alexandria,  Va., 
in  1866,  when  the  "Old  Baltimore"  became  a  part  of 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  South.  At  this 
session  he  was  elected  a  delegate  to  the  General 
Conference  of  the  Church  with  which  his  Conference 
had  become  identified. 

He  was  a  member  of  the  General  Conference  at 
Pittsburgh  1828;  Philadelphia  1832;  Cincinnati  1836; 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Baltimore  1840;  Pittsburgh  1848;  Boston  1852;  In- 
dianapolis 1856;  Buffalo  1860;  New  Orleans  1866. 

He  was  a  strong  Scriptural  preacher,  rightly  di- 
viding the  Word  of  truth.  He  never  hesitated  to 
expose  iniquity  and  to  call  things  by  their  proper 
names.  When  Presiding  Elder  of  the  Potomac 
District,  he  preached  a  sermon  that  went  to  the 
hearts  and  consciences  of  the  people.  The  preacher 
who  sat  in  the  pulpit  confessed  that  he  had  never 
felt  so  mean  in  his  life. 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  services,  he  said,  "Bro. 
Wilson,  I  am  much  obliged  to  you  for  preaching  that 
sermon." 

The  reply  came  as  a  rifle  shot,  "Yes,  many  men 
are  obliged  to  others  for  doing  what  they  are  afraid 
to  do  themselves." 

He  preached  a  sermon  at  a  camp  meeting  in 
Fairfax  County,  Virginia,  in  1851,  which  was  over- 
whelming in  its  effect.  His  text  was  John  XV:26 
and  his  subject,  "The  Personality  and  Divinity  of 
the  Holy  Spirit:  His  Mission,  and  His  Office,  and 
Operations."  The  first  words  were,  "On  the  doc- 
trine of  the  Holy  Ghost  depends  the  existence  of  the 
Church — the  salvation  and  fruit  of  its  members." 
Near  the  close  he  exclaimed,  "What  subHmity  there 
is  in  the  doctrine  of  the  moral  regeneration  of  the 
world  by  this  potent  energy.  How  we  should  fehci- 
tate  ourselves  on  the  visitation  and  influence  of  such 
an  agent."  A  minister  writing  of  the  scene  pro- 
duced by  this  sermon  said,  ' '  But  who  can  fill  the  in- 
terval between  the  first  sentence  and  the  conclusion 
with  a  fit  description  ?  The  Holy  Ghost  attested  the 
truth  of  the  doctrine ;  preachers  and  people  wept  and 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


shouted.  The  influence  was  not  limited  to  those  who 
were  near  the  speaker — the  entire  'circle'  was  bap- 
tized from  above — perhaps  for  once  it  may  be  con- 
fessed, the  people  were  immersed  in  the  Holy  Ghost. " 

Bishop  Keener  said  of  his  preaching: 

"  He  was  blessed  with  the  ability  to  weigh  words  to  an 
uncommon  degree;  but  nothing  in  his  manner  gave  in- 
timation of  the  process;  for  he  spake  with  much  ease,  and 
never  wanted  the  exact  word,  no,  not  for  an  instant.  It 
fell  into  place  as  coins  from  the  mint.  His  regular  move- 
ment of  speech  was  not  disturbed  by  warmth  of  sentiment, 
but  in  the  most  impassioned  moment  of  his  discourse 
there  was  a  rhythmic  march  that  gave  unity  to  the  whole, 
or  wielded  it  with  unrelenting  force.  His  rate  of  speed 
never  surpassed  his  thought,  and  in  this  he  was  not  unlike 
another  great  pulpit  orator  of  the  same  city  or  period — 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Stockton. 

"His  strength  lay  in  a  sound,  unambiguous  treatment 
of  his  theme,  holding  to  the  middle  current  of  evangelical 
exegesis.  He  vitalized  or  reproduced  the  original  power 
of  those  formulas  of  death  or  life  which  hold  eternity  in 
their  syllables.  There  were  in  the  Scriptures  of  the  Old 
and  New  Testament  all  the  words  of  argimient,  truth,  or 
illustration  that  he  needed,  and  he  rarely  went  outside  the 
Bible  for  matter.  The  unction  of  the  Holy  One  was  his 
afflatus,  and  there  remained  in  his  audience  no  room  for 
criticism.  His  perorations  were  an  abandon  of  spiritual 
or  mental  power  in  fullest  sympathy  with  the  truth,  or 
with  those  to  whom  he  delivered  it,  subdued  by  the  habi- 
tual reverence  of  his  soul  for  his  Lord  and  Master.  They 
seemed  to  me  irresistible." 

At  the  close  of  the  "War  Between  the  States"  a 
new  responsibility  was  thrust  upon  him.  The  Con- 
stitutional Convention  was  about  to  assemble  in 
Richmond.  Nearly  all  of  the  people  who  were 
qualified  to  represent  the  counties  were  ineligible  by 

8 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


reason  of  participation  in  the  war.  Pressure  was 
brought  to  bear  upon  Norval  Wilson  though  a  min- 
ister to  serve  as  a  member  of  that  convention.  He 
consented  to  do  so  in  the  event  of  his  election  and 
then  used  the  opportunity  to  admonish  the  gentle- 
men, who  bore  him  the  message,  of  their  duties  to 
God. 

He  was  elected  and  his  position  and  service  as  a 
member  of  that  convention  are  related  in  the  lan- 
guage of  an  honored  associate. 

"Rev.  Norval  Wilson  served  as  the  member  from 
Frederick  County,  in  the  State  Convention  convened  in 
1867,  at  Richmond,  under  the  Act  of  Congress,  for  the 
purpose  of  framing  a  Constitution  for  the  State  of  Virginia, 
in  conformity  with  the  reconstructive  acts.  Although 
advanced  in  years,  and  not  in  firm  health,  he  devoted  him- 
self with  laborious  energy  to  his  representative  duties,  and 
exhibited  his  accustomed  clearness  and  strength  of  intel- 
lect in  their  discharge.  His  sound  judgment,  steady 
courage,  and  cheerful  spirit,  made  him  a  valuable  coun- 
sellor to  the  feeble  minority  of  conservatives  which  sat  in 
that  famous  conclave.  Recognizing  fully  the  sad  wreck 
made  by  the  war,  of  the  true  principles  of  Constitutional 
Government,  he  labored  zealously  to  restore  the  civil 
system  of  Virginia  upon  the  best  attainable  foundation, 
in  view  of  the  fanatical  and  hostile  elements  which  encom- 
passed the  situation.  It  became  the  policy  of  the  con- 
servative members  to  delay  the  action  of  the  convention, 
until  the  thorough  organization  of  the  conservative  party 
could  be  secured  and  effected  throughout  the  State.  Mr. 
Wilson,  who  had  been  placed  on  the  most  important 
committee  of  the  convention,  rendered  valuable  service  to 
this  policy  of  delay,  and  displayed  remarkable  ingenuity 
and  m.ental  resource  in  detaining  the  majority  of  the  com- 
mittee from  reporting  the  obnoxious  plans  to  the  con- 
vention. The  wit,  humor,  skill  and  consummate  know- 
ledge of  human  nature  which  he  displayed  in  conducting 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


this  programme,  were  much  enjoyed  by  his  conservative 
colleagues." 

The  secret  of  the  fruitful  life  of  Norval  Wilson  was 
perhaps  rooted  in  his  high  order  of  mental  gifts,  his 
philosophic  temperament  and  his  complete  consecra- 
tion. What  he  accomplished  was  not  by  the  easy 
efforts  of  genius  but  was  by  disciplined  industry. 

He  not  only  prosecuted  the  study  of  theology 
both  from  convictions  of  duty  and  a  love  of  that 
divine  science,  but  in  the  arduous  work  of  the  itiner- 
acy found  time  to  explore  other  fields.  He  was  a 
diligent  student  of  history,  civil  and  ecclesiastical, 
law,  science,  philosophy  and  other  studies  necessary 
for  broad  and  deep  culture.  During  the  first  twenty 
years  of  his  ministry  he  read  the  Old  Testament 
through  fourteen  times  and  the  New  Testament 
twenty-five  times  in  addition  to  having  read  347  other 
volumes.  In  the  meantime  he  had  preached  2,858 
sermons  and  had  traveled  nearly  40,000  miles  and 
every  mile  of  travel  meant  something  in  those  days. 
He  expected  to  succeed  by  inspiration,  but  he  ex- 
pected the  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Ghost  only  when 
he  had  furnished  his  mind  by  reading  and  had 
methodized  his  thoughts  by  study  and  prayer. 

His  philosophic  temperament  enabled  him  to 
take  rational  and  what  seemed  at  times  stoical  views 
of  life.  But  his  apparent  stoicism  was  a  fruit  of  his 
faith.  He  had  an  overwhelming  sense  that  God  was 
in  everything  and  over  all.-  Therefore  he  bore  un- 
complainingly any  sorrow.  Nothing  was  more  sure 
to  him  than  that  all  things  work  together  for  good 
to  them  that  love  God,  to  them  that  are  called  ac- 
cording to  His  purpose.     It  was  this  knowledge  born 

10 


1.  Alpheus  W.  Wilson  (1850) 

2.  Rev.  Alpheits  W.  Wilson  (1853) 

3.  Rev.  Alpheus  W.  Wilson  (1854) 

4.  Rev.  Alpheus  W.  Wilson  (1855) 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


lead  a  life  of  faith  in  the  Son  of  God  Who  loved  me,  and 
gave  Himself  J  or  me.  Graciously  accept  my  person,  and 
powerfully  maintain  me  in  this  holy  and  earnest  con- 
secration, through  Jesus  Christ  and  by  the  Holy  Spirit. 
Now  unto  the  Father,  and  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Ghost, 
be  glory  forever. 
Winchester,  Va.,  July  16,  1846.  Norval  Wilson. 

"I  herewith  append  my  faith  that  God  .  .  .  ,  of 
promise  c?o^5,  does  accept  the  offering,  and  deigns  .  .  .  .that 
I  am  now  and  altogether  His,  having  my  life  in  God. 
Praise  God  for  His  sovereign,  unsearchable  grace. 

N.  Wilson. 

"The  above  act  of  consecration  renewed  with  hearty 
gratitude  to  God,  April  29,  1850. 
Alexandria,  Va.  N.  Wilson. 

"With  devout  thanksgiving  and  prayer,  I  again  con- 
secrate myself  to  God.     Amen. 
Ingleside.^Feb.  8,  1854.  N.  Wilson." 

His  biographer  gives  a  pen  picture  of  his  dis- 
tinguishing characteristics,  which  will  be  recognized 
by  the  older  members  of  the  Baltimore  Conference 
and  others  who  knew  him.  "His  tall,  slender, 
slightly  stooping  figure;  his  thin  and  furrowed  face; 
his  strongly  marked  features;  his  fine  eyes — clear, 
restful,  penetrating,  the  mirror  of  an  honest  soul; 
his  tremulous  gait;  his  rich,  sonorous  voice,  calm  in 
common  discourse,  quivering  with  intensity  of  con- 
viction as  he  preached  the  Gospel,  and  at  times 
penetrating  to  the  very  soul,  as  he  manifested  the 
exceeding  sinfulness  of  sin,  fitly  uttering  that  Word 
which  'pierces  to  the  dividing  asunder  of  the  joints 
and  marrow,  and  is  a  discerner  of  the  thoughts  and 
intents  of  the  heart'  "  are  the  graphic  touches  of 
this  accurate  portrait. 

12 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Those  who  had  but  a  slight  acquaintance  with 
Norval  Wilson  thought  that  he  lived  in  an  atmos- 
phere of  severity  and  even  sternness.  But  as  has 
well  been  said,  "John  Baptist  was  probably  not  more 
severe  in  aspect;  John,  the  beloved,  not  more  gentle 
in  fact. " 

He  took  the  superannuated  relation  in  1860,  but 
never  ceased  to  do  what  work  he  could  to  the  time 
of  his  death.  His  health,  never  strong,  failed  in 
1860,  and  according  to  Dr.  Armstrong,  in  his  history 
of  the  ' '  Old  Baltimore  Conference,  "  "he  retired  from 
the  active  work  and  chose  Winchester,  Virginia,  as 
his  home,  where  for  sixteen  years  he  never  ceased 
itinerating  among  the  churches,  as  vacancies  gave 
opportunity  for  Presbyterian,  Lutheran  and  Re- 
formed congregations  to  invite  him  temporarily  to 
occupy  their  pulpits." 

His  long  and  useful  life  came  to  an  end  on  August 
9,  1876,  and  he  was  buried  in  Mt.  Hebron  Cemetery, 
Winchester,  by  the  side  of  his  wife,  who  was  Miss 
Cornelia  L.  Howland  and  who,  after  a  happy  union 
of  forty-seven  years,  had  preceded  him  to  the  heaven- 
ly world. 

Her  son  Alpheus  paid  this  tribute  to  her  a  few 
years  after  he  had  left  the  family  roof  tree.  He  said 
that  there  never  had  been  a  meeker,  purer  spirit  than 
that  of  his  mother's,  and  added:  "If  I  had  in- 
herited her  disposition  and  her  piety,  I  would  willingly 
abandon  all  the  talent  and  all  the  external  posses- 
sions of  the  family  to  the  others. " 

Considerable  space  has  been  given  to  the  ancestry 
of  Bishop  Wilson  that  heredity  may  be  accorded  the 
credit  to  which  it  is  entitled  for  the  Hfe  of  this  re- 


13 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


markable  man.  It  will  be  observed  that  the  mental 
habits,  the  moral  convictions,  and  the  heroic  spirit 
of  Norval  Wilson  were  strikingly  reproduced  in  his 
distinguished  son. 

On  his  mother's  side  the  Bishop  was  of  Quaker 
extraction.  Her  father  was  Daniel  Howland,  of  the 
Howland  family  of  New  Bedford.  Daniel  Howland 
was  a  sea  captain,  and  about  the  beginning  of  the 
nineteenth  century  moved  to  Baltimore  and  became 
master  of  one  of  the  famous  Baltimore  chppers  which 
was  destroyed  by  the  French.  He  was  one  of 
Baltimore's  gallant  defenders  in  the  early  days. 

Captain  Howland  was  probably  buried  in  the  old 
South  Cemetery,  Baltimore,  from  which  the  bodies 
were  removed  a  half  century  or  more  ago  to  some 
place  which  is  not  identified  by  the  mortuary  rec- 
ords of  the  city.  His  wife  is  buried  in  Governor 
Holliday's  lot  in  Winchester,  Virginia. 


14 


CHAPTER  II. 

Earlier  Years. 

Little  is  known  respecting  the  boyhood  of  Bishop 
Wilson  beyond  hints  which  fell  from  his  own  lips,  as 
all  his  contemporaries  have  gone,  and  there  are  now 
no  sources  of  information  available. 

We  know,  however,  that  he  was  reared  in  the 
pious  and  wholesome  atmosphere  of  a  Methodist 
parsonage,  than  which,  for  the  moulding  of  character 
according  to  divine  standards,  and  the  furnishing  of 
the  mind  and  heart  for  the  largest  usefulness  for 
time  and  eternity,  there  is  no  superior  training  school 
on  earth. 

When  his  father  was  stationed  in  Baltimore,  Mr. 
George  W.  Corner  was  his  Sunday  School  teacher. 
In  later  life  he  often  remarked  there  was  never  a  more 
saintly  man,  nor  one  who  had  the  faculty  of  making 
his  boys  take  the  Scriptures  into  their  minds  to  a 
greater  degree  of  thoroughness. 

His  life  is  another  refutation  of  the  age-old^ 
canard  that  the  lives  of  ministers'  children  are  a 
practical  denial  of  the  efficacy  of  parsonage  training, 
and  that  generally  they  do  not  proportionately 
measure  up  to  the  lives  of  others  in  responding  to 
life's  great  responsibilities. 

Occasionally  a  minister's  child  does  not  reflect 
credit  upon  its  rearing  and  opportunities,  but  this  is 
the  exception  and  not  the  rule.  As  a  matter  of  fact 
it  has  been  said  that  the  proportion  of  ministers' 
children  who  have  distinguished  themselves  by  large 

15 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


achievements  is  fifty  times  greater  than  those  of  men 
of  other  calHngs.  Twenty  out  of  fifty-one  names  in 
the  National  Hall  of  Fame  are  those  of  ministers' 
sons.  Roger  Williams,  Jonathan  Edwards,  WilHam 
Ellery  Channing,  Emerson,  Holmes,  Henry  Clay, 
Agassiz,  Bancroft,  Beecher,  Stowe,  Lowell,  PhiUps 
Brooks  are  among  the  number.  Of  our  twenty-five 
presidents,  four  were  ministers'  sons — Buchanan, 
Arthur,  Cleveland  and  Wilson.  The  wives  of  five 
presidents  were  ministers'  daughters — Mrs.  John 
Adams,  Mrs.  Millard  Fillmore,  Mrs.  Franklin 
Pierce,  Mrs.  Benjamin  Harrison  and  the  first  Mrs. 
Woodrow  Wilson.  This  does  not  account  for  many 
other  preachers'  children  who  have  distinguished 
themselves  in  statesmanship,  science,  literature,  or 
in  other  fields  or  for  the  tens  of  thousands  of  other 
sons  and  daughters  of  the  parsonage  who  have 
consecrated  their  gifts  and  energies  to  the  moral  and 
spiritual  betterment  of  humanity,  and  who  under 
God  have  been  the  constructive  forces  in  the  up- 
building of  human  Hfe  and  character,  and  the 
estabUshment  of  His  Kingdom  on  earth. 

The  rigid  rules  and  strict  discipHne  of  Mrs. 
Susannah  Wesley  in  the  training  of  the  children  in 
the  Epworth  rectory,  however  efficient  these  means 
were  in  her  days,  were  not  employed  in  the  Wilson 
home.  The  principles  of  divine  truths  were  em- 
phasized and  the  example  of  parental  Hving  and  holy 
character  was  kept  before  the  children  whose  Hves 
unfolded  and  developed  with  most  beneficial  results 
under  such  gracious  influences  in  an  atmosphere  of 
larger  liberty. 

16 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


The  children  were  brought  into  vital  relation  with 
the  Church  and  the  Sunday  School.  In  the  last 
address  the  writer  heard  the  Bishop  make,  he  said 
that  the  Scriptures  which  he  could  quote  so  readily 
were  principally  learned  in  the  Sunday  School  in 
those  times  when  the  Bible  was  more  largely  com- 
mitted to  memory  than  in  these  modern  days  of  the 
voluminous  helps  of  the  International  Lesson  Series. 

In  his  boyhood  the  profound  scholarship  of  his 
later  years  gave  no  foregleams.  He  was  considered 
a  dull  and  backward  youth,  never  having  much  to 
say  and  always  keeping  his  own  counsel.  He 
studied  at  a  classical  academy  at  Winchester,  Vir- 
ginia, during  his  father's  residence  in  that  city  as 
pastor  and  presiding  elder.  Later  when  his  father 
was  appointed  to  Georgetown,  D.  C,  he  entered  the 
Columbia  University,  now  known  as  George  Wash- 
ington University,  and  shortly  after  his  eighteenth 
birthday,  he  surprised  his  friends  by  taking  the  full 
graduate  course  and  successfully  passing  the  exami- 
nation for  a  degree.  He  was  refused  the  degree, 
however,  on  the  ground  of  his  youth. 

He  was  converted  in  August,  1848,  at  a  camp 
meeting  in  Stafford  County,  Virginia,  of  which  his 
father,  who  was  stationed  at  Fredericksburg,  was  in 
charge. 

Shortly  after  his  conversion  he  turned  his  atten- 
tion to  the  question  of  a  vocation.  The  mercantile 
business  first  attracted  him,  and  he  took  a  position 
in  a  dry-goods  store  which  he  retained  for  a  week. 
Medicine  became  his  next  interest,  and  he  studied  as 
a  disciple  of  ^Esculapius  for  two  weeks.  By  that 
time  he  had  his  bearings,  and  the  great  question  of 

17 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


his  life's  calling  was  determined  by  the  voice  of  God. 
In  obedience  to  that  call,  he  entered  the  ranks  of  the 
local  ministry  of  the  Methodist  Church  in  the  spring 
of  1852,  and  served  as  a  supply  on  Charles  Circuit, 
with  Rev.  Robert  Smith  as  his  colleague. 

In  1853,  when  but  nineteen  years  of  age,  he  was 
admitted  on  trial  by  the  Baltimore  Conference,  a 
member  of  a  class  of  thirty-five,  the  largest  on  record, 
of  which  he  was  the  last  survivor  but  one — the  Rev, 
EphraimL.  Kregloe,  of  Shepherdstown,  West  Virginia. 
He  preached  his  semi-centennial  sermon  while  the 
Baltimore  Conference  was  in  session  in  Trinity 
Church  in  1902.  He  was  licensed  to  preach  under 
the  administration  of  his  father;  w^as  ordained  a 
Deacon  by  Bishop  Scott,  March  11,  1855,  and  an 
Elder  by  Bishop  Waugh,  March  8,  1857. 

His  first  appointment  was  junior  preacher  on 
Jefferson  Circuit,  with  W.  G.  Eggleston  as  his 
senior.  During  this  year,  he  was  the  victim  of  a 
spiritual  depression  that  drove  him  to  the  borders  of 
despair.  He  had  lost  an  experience  which  had  once 
blessed  his  life  and  his  ministry  seemed  to  be  barren 
of  fruit.  He  poured  out  his  soul  in  a  letter  to  a 
friend  written  from  Middleway,  Virginia,  now  West 
Virginia,  under  date  of  November  14,  1853,  which 
reveals  the  agony  through  which  he  passed — an  ex- 
perience not  unknown  to  men  who  have  subjected 
their  hearts  to  the  severest  introspection  and  their 
lives  to  the  most  rigid  scrutiny. 

"You  are  not  alone,"  he  wrote,  "in  the  remorse  that 
you  feel  for  having  incurred  the  guilt  of  a  lost  soul. 

"I  am  but  too  well  acquainted  with  the  feeling  of 
which  you  speak.     For  I  fear  that  I  too  have  been  the 


18 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


cause  of  the  ruin  of  more  than  one.  I  frequently  call  to 
mind  the  memory  of  some,  now  in  eternity,  whose  salva- 
tion I  might  have  secured,  had  I  been  faithful.  God  has 
forgiven  and  I  trust  never  again  to  incur  such  guilt. 

"But  let  not  past  sinfulness  keep  you  from  present 
holiness.  The  perfect  love,  which  you  desire,  may  even 
now  be  obtained,  by  finn  trust  in  the  blood  that  cleanseth 
from  all  unrighteousness.  'This  is  the  will  of  God,  even 
your  sanctification.'  Your  mention  of  perfect  love  has 
brought  to  my  mind  a  period  in  my  religious  history,  in 
which  my  heart  rejoiced  in  the  possession  of  that  un- 
speakable gift.  For  more  than  a  year  I  enjoyed  a  heaven 
of  bliss,  which  I  had  thought  beyond  the  reach  or  ken  of 
mortals.  But  it  has  gone.  And  my  spirituality  is  as 
a  smoking  flax.  I  am  unfit  for  the  position  I  occupy  as  a 
preacher  of  Christ  crucified.  But  I  feel  that  'woe  is  unto 
me,  if  I  preach  not  the  gospel,'  and  I  dare  not  leave  the 
work. 

"  Oh,  how  shall  I,  at  the  judgment  seat  of  Christ,  meet 
the  fearful  responsibilities,  which  press  upon  me  and  which 
I  fail  to  meet  here.  May  God  raise  the  smoking  flax  to  a 
flame  and  prepare  me  to  discharge  my  obHgations  to  Him. 
But  the  worst  of  all  with  me  is,  that  I  see  no  fruit  of  my 
labors.  A  barren  fig-tree!  It  is  all  my  own  fault.  I 
sometimes  feel  like  praying  the  Lord  to  remove  me  and 
place  a  more  profitable  servant  in  my  room.  But,  no. 
We  must  'learn  to  labor  and  to  wait.'  Pray  for  me.  My 
daily  prayers  go  up  to  God  for  you. 

"  My  voice,  in  consequence  of  excessive  labors,  while 
in  full  possession  of  a  cold,  has  been  completely  broken 
down.  It  is  very  much  shattered  and  entirely  unfit  for 
use.  But  there  is  no  rest  for  me  or  any  of  us,  this  side 
the  grave.  But  I  would  not  care  for  all  my  labors,  if  they 
did  any  good.  But  as  I  said  above,  they  effect  nothing. 
I  fear  lest  God  should  curse  me,  as  Christ  cursed  the  fig- 
tree  that  yielded  naught  but  leaves.  I  have  preached 
fourteen  times  and  exhorted  half-dozen  times  or  more 
since  I  left  Baltimore  and  no  good  results  have  followed 
therefrom.  What  am  I  to  do.?  Don't  forget  to  pray  for 
me." 

19 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


A  few  months  later  he  had  emerged  from  his  bitter 
experience  and  was  filled  with  faith  and  joy.  The 
assurance  had  returned  and  the  salvation  of  souls  as 
the  fruit  of  his  labors  had  been  a  tonic  to  his  soul. 
A  letter  dated  Berryville,  Virginia,  January  12,  1854, 
speaks  of  the  great  change  in  his  spiritual  vision,  an 
experience  which  caused  him  to  burst  forth  in  the 
language  of  thanksgiving. 

"  During  the  year  the  Lord  has  disappointed  our  fears. 
The  church  has  been  blessed  with  the  visitations  of  His 
grace,  the  communities  have  been  led  to  more  serious  and 
careful  reflection  than  is  usual  among  sinners,  many  of 
them  have  awakened,  many — and  some  of  them  the  most 
desperate — have  been  converted  and  the  work  is  still  in 
progress,  wherever  it  has  been  commenced  and  still 
spreading.  'Bless  the  Lord,  O!  my  soul  and  all  that  is 
within  me  bless  His  holy  name. '  All  this  has  not  been  un- 
productive of  good  to  my  own  soul.  The  old  desires  of 
my  heart  have  sprung  forth  afresh  and  I  have  been  crying 
after  God  with  all  the  earnestness  of  my  nature.  And  it 
has  not  been  in  vain.  My  Christian  experience  has  again 
assumed  the  character  that  it  bore  in  1850 — the  most 
joyous  year  of  my  life.  And  while  the  affairs  of  life  seem 
to  become  gloomy,  God  reveals  Himself  more  brightly  to 
my  heart  and  bids  me  rejoice  in  Him;  what  more  can  a 
mortal  ask  or  desire?  For  a  week  past  there  has  been  a 
deep  tranquillity  of  spirit,  almost  unnatural  to  me,  that 
the  most  distressing  thoughts  or  circumstances  could  not 
disturb.  Amid  all  the  exciting  scenes  through  which  I 
have  passed  and  with  which  I  have  been  more  or  less  in- 
timately connected,  my  heart  has  been  strangely  peace- 
ful. Joy  in  the  Holy  Ghost  has  been  the  most  prominent 
feature  of  my  experience.  And  I  have  found  all  this 
singularly  consistent  with  most  acute  mental  suffering. 
For  I  have  been  suffering  the  most  intense  mental  agony 
from  various  causes.  And  nothing  but  these  riches  and 
fuller  communications  of  Divine  grace  have  supported  me 
and  prevented  my  being  overpowered. " 

20 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


In  this  letter  he  referred  to  his  lack  of  adequate 
preparation  for  standing  his  Conference  examina- 
tions, but  congratulated  himself  upon  the  youth- 
fulness  of  the  committee  which  he  thought  would  not 
be  far  removed  from  its  own  trials  and  would,  there- 
fore, be  more  incHned  to  be  merciful.  The  young 
preachers  may  gather  encouragement  from  the  fact 
that  even  Bishop  Wilson  in  his  early  years  was  not 
without  some  apprehension  and  dread  of  the  exami- 
nation committees. 

In  1854  he  was  sent  as  second  man  to  Berry ville 
Circuit. 

Two  letters  written  this  year  from  Berry  ville,  one 
dated  September  12,  1854,  and  the  other  February 
20,  1855,  emphasize  by  their  contents  the  passion  of 
the  young  preacher  for  the  salvation  of  souls  and  his 
sense  of  the  tremendous  responsibility  of  the  minister 
of  Christ.  It  may  seem  strange  to  many  who  have 
never  associated  the  great  Bishop  with  revivals  to 
read  these  lines  and  others  that  will  appear  later,  but 
the  passion  and  fire  were  in  his  soul,  and  in  his  fare- 
well address  at  the  Oklahoma  General  Conference, 
when  he  retired  from  the  active  duties  of  the  Episco-, 
pacy,  he  placed  tremendous  emphasis  upon  saving 
men. 

In  his  letter  of  September  12,  we  read: 

"  Our  meeting  has  been  one  of  unlocked  for  success. 
....  Men  who  have  been  living  on  in  sin,  totally  un- 
concerned for  years  past,  have  been  powerfully  awakened, 
and  bitter  tears  of  remorse  and  sorrows  have  streamed 
from  eyes  hitherto  unused  to  weep.  This  section  of 
country,  though  but  five  or  six  miles  from  Winchester  and 
within  range  of  our  other  circuit  appointments,  has  been 
almost  totally  destitute  of  the  pure  preaching  of  the 

21 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


gospel,  until  we  took  it  in  a  few  months  since.  At  last 
the  'kingdom  of  God  has  come'  to  this  people  and  'they 
receive  it  gladly.'  We  took  seven  or  eight  into  the  church 
last  night  and  several  more  are  yet  to  join.  We  shall  form 
a  class  immediately,  which,  though  small  in  its  commence- 
ment, we  intend  and  trust  shall  exert  a  great  influence  upon 
the  community  and  be  the  nucleus  of  a  large  society  to 
spring  up  in  after  days.  May  God  carry  on  His  work 
here. 

"If  the  financial  affairs  of  the  circuit  were  unembar- 
rassed, we  should  most  unquestionably  have  a  prosperous 
year.  And,  thank  God,  in  other  respects  we  shall  have  a 
prosperous  year.  But  'money  matters'  press  like  a  dead 
weight  upon  the  church  and  crush  all  the  energy  and 
enterprise  of  the  people.  And  we  have,  in  despite  of  and 
in  direct  opposition  to  all  this,  to  work  them  into  something 
better.  .  .  .  After  one  day's  rest  we  go  at  it  again 
in  an  adjoining  neighborhood  and  shall  try  there  to  get  the 
victory  over  the  World  and  the  Devil  again.  I  cannot  ex- 
press my  gratitude  to  God  for  the  success  that  has  attended 
our  efforts  thus  far  during  the  progress  of  the  year. " 

In  the  letter  of  February  20,  written  just  before 
the  meeting  of  the  Annual  Conference,  he  wrote  of 
preaching  his  last  sermon  of  the  year,  as  if  he  had 
been  in  the  presence  of  the  Judge  of  the  quick  and 
the  dead.  Preaching  was  a  terrible  thing  to  him 
that  must  be  done  in  the  fear  of  God  and  with  a 
sense  of  awful  responsibility. 

"I  have  three  more  sermons  to  preach  before  leaving, 
one  at  Providence  in  the  mountains,  one  at  Berryville,  and 
the  third  at  an  appointment  in  the  country,  some  six  miles 
from  here.  I  scarcely  know  what  themes  to  select.  I 
feel  like  giving  all  the  Gospel  at  each  point.  But  my 
sermons  wotdd  then  be  rather  too  lengthy.  I  think, 
however,  that  I  shall  select  three  of  the  plainest  texts  I 
can  find — such  as  'Prepare  to  meet  thy  God,'  'God  be 
merciful  to  me  a  sinner'  or  the  like.     I  want  to  leave  an 

22 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


impression  on  the  hearts  of  my  hearers,  not  in  favor  of 
myself,  but  a  permanent  religious  impression,  that  shall 
result  in  the  salvation  of  those  to  whom  I  am  sent  for  the 
last  time.  God  only  can  tell  when  or  under  what  cir- 
cumstances we  may  next  meet.  If  it  be  at  the  Judgment  scat 
I  want  to  be  assured  of  my  freedom  from  guilt  in  relation  to 
them.  So  I  shall  preach  as  though  my  coffin  and  winding 
sheet  were  just  before  me.  As  regards  the  material  of  my 
preaching  hitherto,  I  have  nothing  with  which  to  reproach 
myself — for  I  have  preached  Christ  and  have  tried  to 
benefit  the  people  and  not  to  gratify  personal  feelings  or 
promote  personal  reputation.  But  there  is  more  to  be 
accounted  for  than  my  pulpit  ministrations,  and  in  other 
respects  I  have  been  woefully  defective.  I  trust  that  my 
coming  year,  wherever  it  be  spent,  may  be  more  faith- 
fully given  to  God  than  the  past.  I  look  for  Divine  as- 
sistance and  consequent  improvement  in  every  particular. " 

In  1855  he  was  junior  preacher  on  East  Loudoun 
in  Virginia  with  headquarters  in  Middleburg,  at  the 
home  of  Edwin  C.  Broun,  a  member  of  an  old 
Methodist  family  of  Loudoun  County.  In  an  undated 
letter  which  w^as  evidently  written  not  long  after 
his  appointment  to  this  work,  he  announces  his 
purpose  to  pay  more  attention  to  preaching  and  im- 
prove its  quaUty  that  year;  he  places  an  humble « 
estimate  upon  his  intellectual  gifts  and  his  imagina- 
tive powers,  but  large  value  upon  diHgent  applica- 
tion and  the  art  of  extemporizing;  the  former  char- 
acterized his  entire  after-Hfe,  and  the  latter  he 
developed  to  such  a  degree  that  he  was  always 
ready  to  speak  upon  any  subject  to  which  he  had 
given  his  thought. 

The  letter  shows  the  principles  which  he  had 
reasoned  out,  adopted,  and  which  were  among  the 
foundation  stones  of  his  marvelous  success. 

This  letter  reads  as  follows : 
23 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


"I  want  to  pay  more  attention  to  my  preaching  this 
year  and  make  considerable  improvement.  There  is 
room  for  it.  And  I  often  feel  ashamed  of  myself  that  I 
should  be  so  far  inferior  to  many  young  men  in  the  Con- 
ference who  have  been  at  the  work  no  longer  than  I.  My 
mind,  however,  is  not  by  any  means  a  superior  one  and 
has  not  had  the  advantage  of  the  preparatory  training 
that  some  of  them  have  enjoyed.  I  have  had  no  teacher 
who  bestowed  any  special  attention  upon  me,  since  I  was 
thirteen  or  foiirteen  years  of  age.  All  that  I  have  acquired 
since  that  time  and  all  the  improvement  that  I  have  made 
has  been  by  my  own  unaided  effort.  Books  I  have  had  at 
my  command  and  I  have  been  an  extensive  reader,  literary, 
scientific  and  classical.  And  I  have  digested  what  I 
read,  so  as  to  deduce  and  retain  general  principles,  not 
merely  facts.  But  I  have  never  accustomed  my  mind  to 
develop  its  resources  and  never  brought  it  to  effort  and 
action  until  I  commenced  preaching.  Hence  my  great 
deficiency,  owing,  doubtless,  very  much  to  the  want  of 
intellect,  is  due  in  no  small  degree  to  the  want  of  habitual 
mental  effort.  I  am  aware  that  in  some  respects  I  possess 
some  advantage  over  many  of  my  brethren,  as  in  the  ex- 
temporizing faculty  and  command  of  language,  which 
last  I  attribute  to  my  former  familiarity  with  the  dead 
languages  and  my  habit  of  investigating  the  philosophy 
thereof,  and  this  of  course  is  within  the  reach  of  all.  But 
I  possess  very  little  originality  of  mind,  and  a  feeble 
imagination,  both  of  which  are  essential  to  eminence  in 
public  speaking. 

"But  I  shall  try  and  make  up  by  diligent  application 
what  I  lack  in  native  power.  And  you  know  that  I  hold 
the  theorv^  that  perseverance  and  labor  are  sufficient  to 
remedy  all  defects.  Thus  I  may  at  some  time  become  a 
tolerable  preacher  and  I  trust  in  God  that  I  shall  be  a 
successful  one.  It  is  a  wise  and  consoling  provision  of  the 
Gospel  that  'the  foolish  and  weak  things  of  the  world  are 
made  use  of  to  confound  the  things  that  are  mighty  and 
wise. '  " 


24 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


A  few  months  later  he  told  a  friend  of  a  con- 
templated change  in  his  Conference  relations  which 
had  probably  occupied  his  thoughts  for  some  time. 
He  was  considering  transferring  to  the  Pittsburgh 
Conference.  It  was  a  happy  providence  that 
interposed  at  this  critical  time,  as  had  he  made  the 
change  his  distinguished  services  would  have  likely 
been  lost  to  Southern  Methodism. 

He  said  to  his  friend: 

"I  have  never  thought  the  Baltimore  Conference  my 
place.  None  can  succeed  in  accomplishing  much  good 
here  unless  he  possess  either  very  superior  talent,  or  a 
great  deal  of  business  tact.  The  demand  universal  is  for 
one  or  other  of  these.  Unfortunately  for  me  I've  neither 
the  one  nor  the  other.  I  know  full  well  the  opinion 
generally  entertained  concerning  me — but  I  think  I  am 
far  better  acquainted  with  my  own  mental  resources  than 
any  one  else  can  possibly  be.  And  even  if  I  possessed  the 
talent  which  some  ascribe  to  me,  you  know  that  I  am  so 
unpopular  in  my  style  and  manner  of  preaching  that  I 
can  scarcely  hope  to  do  good  anywhere  else  than  in  a 
new,  or  comparatively  new  country  and  among  a  people 
essentially  different  from  those  of  the  Baltimore  Con- 
ference." 

A  letter  written  from  Warrenton  in  the  fall  of 
this  year  revealed  the  tendency  of  the  mind  of  the 
young  preacher  to  Christian  philosophy  which  grew 
into  an  absorbing  study  with  passing  years. 

"But  to  my  mind  there  is  far  more  to  be  learned  and 
more  profit  to  be  derived  from  an  earnest,  strict  scrutiny 
of  the  movements  of  the  unseen,  spiritual  world  than  all 
the  variety  of  villainy  and  virtue  of  the  external  world  can 
afford.  You  know  that  I  have  always  considered  human 
nature  as  identical  in  all  its  various  aspects.  And  hence  in 
judging  of  the  character  of  men  from  their  actions,  I  place 

25 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


myself  in  their  circumstances  and  seek  for  the  motive  that 
would  impel  me  to  such  and  such  deeds  in  their  situation. 
Accordingly,  I  endeavor  to  make  myself  thoroughly  con- 
versant with  all  the  machinery  of  my  own  heart,  which  is 
the  seat  of  principle  and  the  source  of  action  and,  with 
this  view,  suffer  not  an  act,  or  an  emotion  of  my  life  to 
pass  unobserved,  or  uninvestigated — always  taking  care 
to  refer  to  God's  word,  as  the  revealer  of  the  human  heart 
and  as  the  only  standard  by  which  to  try  its  operations. 

"But  alas!  for  me,  I  find  only  the  conceptions  of  evil 
and  the  principles  of  iniquity  within  myself,  with  here  and 
there  an  indication  of  Divine  influence  in  the  form  of  a 
contempt  for  myself  and  a  desire  for  the  right  and  the 
true  and  an  occasional  principle  and  emotion  manifested, 
whose  only  origin  could  have  been  God.  But  few  hours 
of  my  life  pass  without  the  contention  of  the  two  natures 
for  the  supremacy.  There  is  an  almost  incessant  tempest 
of  strife  raging  within,  intermitted  but  once  in  a  long 
while  by  the  peculiar  displays  of  Divine  grace,  bringing 
peace  to  my  troubled  conscience  and  wearied  heart.  I 
need  not  sa^'  that  this  is  unsatisfactory  to  me.  You  know, 
that  bad  as  I  am,  I  can  never  rest  quietly  under  the  domin- 
ion of  sin,  nor  be  satisfied  with  a  mere,  partial,  inefficient 
resistance,  almost  invariably  succeeded  by  long,  bitter, 
unavailing  repentance.  Stability  of  Christian  character, 
steadfastness  of  purpose,  entire  victory  over  and  eternal 
death  to  sin  are  what  I  require  in  order  to  have  peace.  Is 
not  the  Gospel  as  strict  in  its  demands  ?  I  am  sick  of  self, 
sensual  gratification,  sin.  God  knows  I  long  to  be  freed. 
But  such  has  been  my  habit  so  long,  that  I  seem  to  myself 
to  be  doomed  to  it  for  life.  If  ever  man  could  use  Paul's 
wail  'O!  wretched  man  that  I  am,  who  shall  deliver  me 
from  the  body  of  this  death?'  it  is  I.  True,  I  am  not  in 
utter  despair.  I  take  courage  from  even  the  feeble  in- 
dication of  the  Spirit's  influence  within  me.  Jesus  can 
save — Jesus  must  save — Jesus  shall  save  me.  I  know  that 
the  earnest  struggle  that  I  once  more  engage  in  will  be — I 
trust  a  final — victorious  one." 


26 


1.  Mrs.  C(jiiNi;LiA  Huwlam)  Wilsu.s,  .Mother  iif  Bishop  Wilso 

2.  Susan  Bond  Lipscomu  (ISoO)     (Later  Mus.  A.  W.  Wilson) 

3.  Susan  Bond  Lipscomb  (1853)     (Later  Mrs.  A.  W.  Wilson) 

4.  Susan  Bond  Lipscomb  (1854)     (Later  Mrs.  A.  W.  Wilson) 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


In  the  early  part  of  this  year  Miss  Bettie  Lips- 
comb, a  lovely  young  woman  of  sixteen,  a  sister  of 
the  lady  who  afterwards  became  his  wife,  died  of 
erysipelas  at  her  home  in  Baltimore.  The  future 
Mrs.  Wilson  remained  by  the  bedside  of  this  loved 
sister  all  night,  and  when  the  delirium  would  lapse 
for  an  interval  and  a  lucid  moment  come,  she  talked 
to  her  of  personal  salvation  and  had  the  joy  of 
seeing  her  accept  Christ  before  passing  to  the  spirit's 
world.  The  letters  of  consolation  this  young 
preacher  but  twenty  years  of  age  wrote  to  his  fiancee 
will  bring  comfort  to  other  hearts  that  have  passed 
through  the  waters.  They  are  strong  and  Scrip- 
tural in  thought,  apt  and  beautiful  in  diction,  and 
reveal  the  wealth  of  tenderness  and  sympathy  of  the 
heart  from  which  they  came. 

Both  are  reproduced.  When  the  first  was  writ- 
ten, the  tidings  of  the  death  of  Miss  Lipscomb  had 
not  reached  the  writer. 

"When  you  wrote  to  me  that  Bettie  was  ill,  you  did 
not  mention  the  disease  and  it  was  not  until  Bro.  Mc- 
Mullin  came  from  Baltimore  and  told  me  that  it  was 
erysipelas  in  the  head  that  I  began  to  entertain  any  fears' 
as  to  the  issue.  I  had  seen  a  great  deal  of  the  disease  and 
knew  that  it  was  very  dangerous  on  account  of  its  constant 
tendency  to  the  brain  and  I  dreaded  the  effect  upon 
Bettie's  constitution.  And  now,  my  worst  fears  are 
realized.  If  not  too  late  and  'if  it  be  possible,' may  God 
in  His  goodness  avert  it.  Nevertheless  not  our  will,  but 
Thine,  O !  Father,  be  done.  I  have  long  loved  her  as  one 
of  my  own  sisters  and  the  blow  will  fall  heavily — very 
heavily  on  me.  I  know  how  you  feel  and  sympathize  with 
you,  for  not  three  years  have  rolled  away  since  I  bade  the 
long  farewell  to  the  best  beloved  of  my  own  sisters  and 
stood  by  her  beautiful  corpse  and  followed  it  to  the  home 

27 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


of  all  the  living.     May  God  sustain  and  comfort  you  as  He 
did  me  in  that  hour  of  stem  trial  and  exquisite  suffering. 

"  But  there's  a  joy  in  the  midst  of  all  this  sorrow  that  is 
strange  to  the  hearts  of  those  who  know  not  the  Gospel. 
As,  'dust  to  dust,'  the  frail  body  is  committed  to  the  tomb 
and  the  darkness  of  the  grave  envelops  all  that  is  visible 
of  the  beloved  one,  there's  a  voice  that  rolls  with  more  than 
earthly  melody  from  beyond  the  thick  gloom  of  death  and 
thrills  through  our  hearts  its  glorious  assurance  'I  am  the 
resurrection  and  the  life.'  Oh !  there  is  no  more  death,  for 
Jesus  'hath  abolished  death.'  The  tomb  is  not  the  home 
of  the  dead ;  it  is  the  resting  place  of  the  living.  We  may 
sorrow  at  the  parting;  but  we  sorrow  not  as  those  that 
have  no  hope,  for  we  shall  meet  again.  And,  thank  God, 
to  whatever  part  of  the  glorious  Gospel  of  Christ  I  turn  my 
eye,  my  heart  finds  a  resting-place  in  the  exceeding  great 
and  precious  promises  so  thick-scattered  therein.  Then, 
dearest  Sue,  rejoice  in  the  fullness  of  the  Gospel,  thus 
provided  so  richly  for  the  most  trying  circumstances  of 
life  and,  while  suffering  the  will  of  a  kind  and  merciful 
Father,  'who  doth  not  willingly  afffict  nor  grieve  the 
children  of  men,'  be  thankful  that  you  are  a  partaker  of 
consolation  that,  without  Christ,  would  be  unknown  to 
you. 

"We  ought  to  be  very  thankful  that  she  has  given  such 
expression  of  her  willingness  to  meet  death,  even  though 
God  should  see  fit  to  remove  her  without  a  return  of 
reason.  But  I  trust  and  pray  God  that  your  hearts  may 
be,  or,  if  she  be  now  gone,  may  have  been  comforted  with 
other  and  even  stronger  and  clearer  declarations  of  her 
trust  in  Jesus.  Of  her  safety  I  have  not,  nor  do  I  suppose 
you  have,  any  doubts.  But  ah!  with  all  the  consolation 
afforded  by  the  Gospel  and  the  circumstances  of  her 
death,  I  can't  help  feeling,  as  you  do,  that  it  is  very  hard 
to  part  with  her  and  have  the  family  circle  thus  broken 
in  upon;  And,  again,  my  heart  would  pray,  'if  it  be  pos- 
sible, let  this  cup  pass  from  us.'  May  God  spare  her  yet 
a  little  longer,  if  she  is  still  living.  How  I  long  to  see  her 
once  more  and  most  gladly,  if  it  were  in  my  power,  would 


28 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


I  visit  her  now.  But  while  I  am  writing  she  may  be  in 
the  better  world  and  all  regrets  and  longings  are  vain. 
Give  yourself  up,  darling,  into  the  hands  of  God,  submit 
to  be  governed  by  His  will,  assured  that,  painful  though 
it  be  for  a  time,  it  is  best  and  safest  in  the  end.  We'll  all 
meet  in  heaven. 

This  is  the  second  letter: 

"Alas!  it  is  even  so.  Bettie,  our  dear  Bettie,  is  in 
heaven.  I  looked  anxiously  for  a  letter  from  you  this 
evening,  hoping  to  hear  of  a  change  for  the  better — but, 
fearing  that  it  could  not  be  so.  I  received  information 
from  Father  of  her  departure  and  also  the  joyous  assurance 
that  she  had  died  very  happily  and  left  a  certain  testimony 
behind,  from  which  I  infer  that  God  was  pleased  to  return 
her  to  reason  again.  I  am  truly  thankful  to  God  for  the 
consolation  that  I  am  sure  you  experienced  from  that. 

"I  have  been  thinking  of  and  praying  for  her  and  all  of 
you  since  your  letter  came  to  hand.  And  I  could  not 
throw  off  the  feeling  of  sadness  that  oppressed  me.  And 
now  I  feel  as  though  one  of  my  own  sisters  had  gone.  I 
deeply  and  truly  sympathize  with  you,  dearest  Sue,  and 
would  willingly  bear  the  burden  of  your  sorrow,  if  it  were 
in  my  power.  I  would  offer  consolation,  but  I  can't  con- 
sole myself.  We  know  that  God  is  good,  and  doth  not 
willingly  afflict  nor  grieve  the  children  of  men.  We  know 
that  if  we  could  have  seen  the  end  from  the  beginning,  as 
He  has,  we  should  have  done  likewise.  And  we  can  bow 
submissively  and  say  'Thy  will  be  done ;'  but  our  anguished 
hearts  will  feel  and  no  consolation  can  supply  that  want 
within,  or  fill  that  void  in  the  family  circle,  or  return  the 
familiar  sound  of  that  loved  voice,  or  lighten  again  to  our 
gaze  the  eye  now  closed  in  the  grave.  It  is  not  the  death, 
it's  the  separation  that  fills  our  hearts  with  pain.  We 
know  that  the  spirit  lives  and  is  happy — happy  beyond 
our  conception;  but  it  lives  far  from  us.  It  will  no  more 
partake  of  our  joys,  nor  sympathize  with  our  sorrows;  it 
will  no  more  unite  with  us  in  social  intercourse,  nor  bear 
us  company  in  the  varied  pursuits  of  life.     It  still  lives; 

29 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


but  years  on  years  must  roll  away,  the  tr^ang  scenes  of 
time,  the  conflict  with  death  must  pass,  the  morning  of 
the  resurrection,  the  dawn  of  eternity  must  be  ushered  in, 
ere  we  shall  again  look  upon  the  loved  one  gone  before  and 
have  the  sorrow  and  its  effects  forever  and  entirely  effaced ; 
may  He,  who  wept  at  the  grave  of  His  friend  and  even, 
now,  thank  God,  feels  for  us,  comfort  all  our  hearts  and 
sanctify  the  bereavement  to  our  good.  Tr>%  dear  Sue, 
to  trust  and  cling  more  closely  to  Him.  Most  keenly  do 
I  feel  it  and  never  have  the  workings  of  Providence  seemed 
so  inscrutable  as  now. 

"But  He  hath  done  as  seemed  good  in  His  sight  and 
He  knows  what  is  best. 

"May  God  bless  you,  darling,  and  support  you. 

"I  was  so  much  better  on  Sabbath  morning  when  I 
wrote  to  you,  that  I  concluded  to  try  and  preach  and  did 
so.  I  preached  of  Jesus,  for  I  was  very  sad,  thinking  of 
Bettie,  and  I  found  my  heart  full  and  it  was  a  great  relief 
to  tell  of  the  power  of  the  blood  that  saves  from  sin. 
And  Jesus  was  with  me  and  I  felt  that  I  was  near  the  cross 
and  my  rejoicing  in  that  cross  was  more  than  my  tongue 
could  tell.  My  heart  was  melted  and  subdued  and  tinged 
with  sadness,  and  though  it  was.  throughout  the  day  I 
thought  and  spoke  of  and  rejoiced  in  the  cross  of  Christ. " 


30 


CHAPTER  III. 
Trials  and  Triumphs  of  the  Itineracy. 

In  the  spring  of  1856  Rev.  A.  W.  Wilson  was  ap- 
pointed junior  preacher  of  Patapsco  Circuit.  Shortly 
after  going  to  his  new  work  he  was  the  victim  of  an 
accident  that  nearly  cost  him  his  life.  Like  many 
other  Methodist  preachers  he  was  fond  of  a  mettle- 
some steed,  and  his  fondness  was  in  proportion  to  the 
spiritedness  of  the  animal.  While  on  East  Loudoun 
he  broke  and  gaited  a  fractious  colt  for  the  father  of 
Mr.  L.  W.  Hopkins,  the  author  of  the  well  known 
war  book,  "From  Bull  Run  to  Appomattox. "  This 
colt  showed  its  appreciation  of  its  training  by  render- 
ing excellent  service  for  the  South  in  the  "War 
Between  the  States. " 

But  young  Wilson  learned  from  experience  that 
a  horse  is  a  vain  thing  for  safety,  for  he  was  thrown 
from  his  own  steed  in  going  to  an  appointment  and 
narrowly  escaped  fatal  injury.  He  describes  the 
event  in  a  letter  of  vivid  picturesqueness  and  phil- 
osophizes upon  the  lessons  it  taught.  But  let  him 
tell  the  story  in  his  own  energetic  style : 

"I  have  just  returned  from  an  adventure  *  *  * 
which,  had  you  witnessed  it,  would  have  excited  and 
terrified  your  loving  heart  almost  beyond  your  endurance. 
I  have  been  within  a  hair's  breadth  of  the  other  world  and 
my  preservation  is  due  to  the  Providence  of  God  alone. 
I  started  from  here  a  half  an  hour  since  to  ride  to  my  ap- 
pointment for  tomorrow,  thoughtless  of  danger,  antici- 
pating a  pleasant  trip  and  dreaming  as  usual.  After 
riding  a  few  hundred  yards  my  horse,  wild  generally,  more 

31 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


than  ordinarily  so  today,  after  a  week's  rest,  got  frightened 
and  started  to  run,  for  which  I  cared  nothing,  and  indeed 
was  rather  wilHng  to  let  him  go,  as  I  was  late,  only  check- 
ing him  as  he  went  dashing  downhill,  to  prevent  his  falling. 
But  as  I  turned  the  corner  of  a  lane  leading  into  the  pike, 
I  felt  the  saddle  turning  off  and  then  ran  him  over  against 
a  bank  at  the  other  side  of  the  road  so  that  I  might  not 
fall  on  the  stones.  The  saddle  went  and  I  with  it,  rolling 
right  under  the  horse's  feet.  He  reared  and  his  front 
feet  were  coming  right  down  in  my  face  and  neck  and  then 
all  would  have  been  over  with  me.  But  fortunately  the 
bridle  rein  was  still  in  my  left  hand  and  I  gave  a  jerk  to 
one  side  with  that  and  at  the  same  moment  with  my  right 
hand  gave  his  legs  a  blow  as  hard  as  I  could  send  it. 
These  saved  me — he  brought  one  foot  down  on  my  side 
and  the  other  on  my  thigh — stumbled  over  me — fell  and 
rolled  down  the  hill,  leaving  me,  my  saddlebags,  saddle  and 
everything  else  in  the  mud.  The  worst  of  the  matter  is  a 
broken  umbrella,  broken  saddle  girth,  and  myself  and 
fixings  plastered  with  mud.  I  am  safe  and  unhurt.  But 
I  had  made  my  arrangements  for  eternity  and  the  thoughts 
of  past,  present  and  future  passed  through  my  mind  with 
the  rapidity  of  the  lightning  flash  while  lying  under  the 
hoofs  of  my  horse. 

"I  thought  of  the  errors  of  my  life — the  sins  of  my 
youth  and  the  backslidings  of  my  Christian  career,  and 
hung  upon  the  cross.  I  thought  of  my  present  condition 
and  I  felt  grateful  that  I  had  a  sense  of  my  acceptance 
with  God  and  'was  ready  to  be  offered  up.' 

"I  thought  of  the  future  and  rejoiced  in  the  prospect 
of  Heaven's  glory  *  *  *  j  have  heard  of  the  rapidity 
of  thought  before — but  never  experienced  it  to  such  an 
extent,  and  the  rapidity  of  feeling  too,  in  all  its  forms  and 
gradations. 

"I  have  been  wondering  if  other  minds  are  like  my 
own.  Totally  destitute  of  fear,  I  lost  not  for  one  moment 
self-possession  and,  even,  amid  the  wild  rush  of  thought 
above  alluded  to,  I  forgot  not  to  use  and  devise  means  for 
self-preservation  and,  in  case  I  lived  after  it,  to  form  plans 


32 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


for  the  control  of  my  horse.  Is  such  absolute  self-control 
the  lot  of  men  generally  ? 

"You  may  think  this  matter  one  of  nature's  ordering 
and  so  think  the  question  of  no  moment,  or  capable  only 
of  a  general  answer.  But  I  have  an  idea  that  God  has 
endowed  men  with  specific  qualities  for  specific  purposes. 

"For  instance  you  meet  with  some  men  of  iron  nerve, 
great  intellect,  large  souls,  grave,  determined,  energetic — 
just  fitted  in  every  respect  for  great  responsibilities. 

"Did  you  ever  meet  with  such  an  individual  who  did 
not  in  the  course  of  his  life  incur  those  responsibilities? 
If  you  observe  carefully,  you'll  find  it  a  general  rule  that 
men  are  placed  in  the  position  for  which  they  are  fitted  by 
nature.  The  exceptions  are  in  the  cases  of  those  who 
refuse  to  submit  themselves  to  the  guidance  of  God — 
God's  Providence.  And,  even  among  these,  in  the  ma- 
jority of  instances,  those  very  qualities  will  originate  the 
circumstances  amid  which  they  are  fitted  to  act. 

"And  taking  this  into  account  I  have  sometimes 
thought  that  some  particular  circumstances  of  importance 
to  myself  and,  perhaps,  to  others,  are  yet  to  arise,  re- 
quiring the  exercise  of  this  particular  quality  of  self- 
possession — or  rather  the  power  for  which  it  leaves  room. 
Indeed  I  sometimes  go  farther  still  and  become  a  fatalist. 
At  all  times  I  am  enough  of  one  to  believe  that  my  whole 
course  through  life  will  be  controlled  by  the  Providence  of 
God,  as  the  past  has  been.  I  have  had  some  stem  lessons 
to  learn  at  the  hand  of  Providence — but  I  have  always 
recognized  that  hand  and  believe  that  all  these  lessons  are 
to  find  their  development  and  design  in  my  future  life. 
I  could  not  and  would  not  endure  life  without  this  belief. 
Despondent  as  I  naturally  am,  I  should  have  abandoned 
my  most  favorite  schemes  and  important  pursuits  but  for 
this." 

During  the  summer  of  his  year  on  Patapsco,  he 
attended  a  camp  meeting  at  Berryville,  and  was 
brought  into  close  association  with  many  of  the 
people  he  had  formerly  served.     He  became  so  deeply 


33 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


interested  in  soul  saving  and  personal  work  that  he 
remained  a  week  longer  than  he  intended. 

An  excerpt  from  an  old  letter  expresses  in  his  own 
language  the  exalted  privilege  and  joy  he  had  in 
leading  souls  to  Christ. 

"I  know  not  whether  the  preacher  on  B.  circuit  was 
grateful  to  me  for  the  exchange.  But  I  am  sure  that  I 
now  feel  grateful  to  my  God  for  the  Providence  that  so 
ordered  my  steps.  I  went  there  with  a  heart  to  work. 
As  soon  as  I  reached  the  ground  I  found  two  very  sweet 
girls — daughters  of  the  best  friend  I  had  on  that  circuit,  a 
noble,  generous-hearted  Christian,  who  went  to  Heaven 
last  winter,  and  it  entered  my  mind  at  once  to  make  their 
salvation  the  end  of  my  efforts  while  there.  I  felt  an 
intense  solicitude  for  them — prayed  for  them — conversed 
with  them — appealed  to  them  in  private  and  public  by 
every  interest  and  emotion  of  humanity  and,  as  day  after 
day  rolled  away  and  they  still  yielded  not,  though  power- 
fully awakened,  I  became  more  and  more  anxious  and 
endured  an  almost  intolerable  agony  on  their  account. 
But  I  was  resolved  and  would  believe  even  against  all 
human  hope.  And  God  favored  me.  Yesterday  after- 
noon I  went  to  the  elder  of  the  two  and  told  her  that  I 
wanted  to  know  her  decision  immediately.  If  she  de- 
clined going  to  the  altar,  I  would  say  no  more  to  her  on  the 
subject  this  side  the  judgment  seat  of  Christ.  She 
yielded  and  I  knelt  by  her  until  after  midnight  and  then 
salvation  came.  Her  sister  came  at  night  and  is  still 
earnestly  seeking  mercy,  or  has  found  it.  Her  brother, 
too,  went  to  the  altar — so  that  now  all  the  family  are  on 
the  way  to  Heaven.  Besides  this  God  made  me  the  in- 
strument of  the  conversion  of  six  or  seven  other  souls. 
Indeed  the  principal  part  of  the  exhorting  and  the  conduct 
of  all  the  prayer  meetings  (with  one  exception)  and  altar 
work  was  thrown  upon  me.  I  left  the  place  this  morning 
with  a  clear  conscience  and  a  light  heart  and  received  from 
the  lips  of  several  newly  converted  ones  and  of  nearlj^  all 
the  old  membership  blessing  and  thanks  for  my  labors.   All 

34 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


this  is  very  soothing  and  comfortable  to  me  who  so  seldom 
sees  any  fruit  of  my  labors.  I  feel  much  strengthened  by  it 
and  am  in  better  mood  for  the  work  of  our  own  camp.  I 
am  more  cheerful  and  joyous  than  I  have  been  for  many 
long  months.  I  am  looking  now  and  waiting  for  yet 
larger  evidences  of  the  favor  of  my  God.  Indeed  I  hope 
yet  to  be  a  Christian.  God  help  me.  You  must  not  fail 
to  pray  for  me. 

"Tomorrow  we  expect  the  Revs.  N.  Wilson,  J.  S.  Mar- 
tin, B.  B.  Hamlin,  R.  D.  Chambers  and  one  of  the  Caroline 
St.  preachers,  to  open  our  work  for  us.  Good  enough  for 
a  commencement, " 

A  letter  written  from  Germantown,  August  24, 
1857,  describes  a  very  successful  camp  meeting  in 
whose  preaching  and  other  services  he  took  a  very 
prominent  part.  In  those  days  a  tremendous 
emphasis  was  placed  upon  soul  saving,  and  camp 
meetings  and  revivals  were  a  large  part  of  the  labors 
of  the  preachers.     He  writes  concerning  this  meeting : 

"The  Camp  Meeting  was  very  successful — the  most 
remarkable  in  many  respects  that  I  ever  attended.  The 
preachers  were  B.  H.  Nadal,  John  S.  Martin— both  of 
whom  inquired  after  and  sent  their  kind  regards  to 
yourself— J.  W.  Wolfe.  I.  N.  Eakin,  F.  C.  Tebbs,  T.  B. 
McFalls  (Mat  Swink's  old  friend),  J.  Engle,  J.  Graham, 
the  circuit  preachers  and  your  humble  servant.  None  of 
us  hurt  ourselves  preaching.  Sennons  were  good — but 
ordinary.  No  special  feeling  displayed.  Nor  was  any 
marked  interest  apparent  upon  the  part  of  the  membership. 
And  yet,  despite  of  coldness  and  difficulties,  the  work 
went  on.  Several  times  during  the  meeting  I  think  there 
must  have  been  fully  two-thirds  of  the  unconverted  part 
of  the  congregation  seeking  religion. 

"Many  families — Presbyterians  by  birth  and  training 
and  holding  old  prejudices  against  Methodism,  were 
converted    entire.     It    is    impossible    to    say    what    the 

35 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


numbers  were.     Fifty-six  names  were   taken   and   very 
many  left  the  ground  before  they  could  be  reported. " 

The  Conference  of  1857  sent  him  as  preacher  in 
charge  to  Warm  Springs. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  subject  of  this  sketch 
was  junior  preacher  on  each  of  his  first  four  charges, 
for  at  that  time  it  was  the  custom  to  train  the  young 
preachers  on  the  large,  old-fashioned  circuits  under 
older  men  of  larger  experience  and  wisdom.  It  is 
doubted  w^hether  we  have  greatly  improved  upon  the 
plan  of  our  fathers. 

On  March  4  of  this  year  he  was  married  to  Miss 
Susan  Bond  Lipscomb,  daughter  of  the  Reverend  and 
Mrs.  Philip  D.  Lipscomb,  of  Baltimore.  It  was  an 
evening  wedding  in  which  four  groomsmen  and  a 
corresponding  number  of  bridesmaids  took  part. 

The  newly  wedded  couple  journeyed  to  the 
bridegroom's  new  appointment  in  a  buggy,  the  trip 
covering  an  entire  week,  but  the  young  bride  de- 
clared repeatedly  afterwards  that  she  had  never  en- 
joyed anything  like  this  primitive  bridal  tour  to  the 
mountains. 

But  the  romance  and  poetry  of  their  lives  w^ere 
succeeded  by  hardships,  chief  of  which  was  their 
enforced  separation  after  three  months  of  each 
others'  companionship.  The  young  wife  because  of 
illness  was  compelled  to  go  to  Charles  Town,  West 
Virginia,  then  in  Virginia,  and  make  her  home  with 
her  husband's  father  and  mother  where  she  could 
receive  the  proper  medical  attention,  while  the  young 
husband  wrought  on  his  mountain  charge.  It 
would  have  been  more  than  human  for  him  not  to 
have  chafed  under  this  arrangement,  especially  as  he 

36 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


was  unable  to  provide  his  wife  with  the  comforts  she 
needed  because  of  the  scarcity  of  money.  He  re- 
ceived that  year  the  munificent  sum  of  $130. 

A  letter  written  to  his  wife  from  Warm  Springs, 
September  1,  1857,  reveals  untoward  conditions 
which  are  known  to  but  few  of  our  preachers  of  the 
present  day ;  a  story  of  proverty  and  suffering : 

"And  so  you  remain,  my  own  dearest  wife,  in  Charles- 
town*  until  spring?  I  feel  very,  very  sad  and  lonely  and 
the  thought  of  so  long  a  separation  is  intolerable.  But  I 
cannot  say  nay  to  the  plan. 

"Money  is  so  scarce — or  so  hard  to  get  hold  of  that  I 
begin  to  doubt  if  the  circuit  will  pay  the  expenses  already 
incurred.  To  add  to  these  would  of  course  only  add  to  the 
burden  of  debt. 

"But  I  am  by  no  means  satisfied  with  such  results. 
'What  God  hath  joined  together  let  no  man  put  asunder' 
....  The  only  time  that  I  could  spare  to  come  to  see 
you — ^my  very  precious  love — is  the  week  that  I  have 
engaged  to  give  to  the  Lewisburg  Camp  Meeting,  and  if 
I  could  get  a  release  from  that  engagement  I  do  not  think 
I  can  procure  money  enough  to  pay  my  expenses  down 
and  back.  And  I  fear  that  I  shall  be  in  the  same  situation 
when  Christmas  comes.  I  have  not  paid  one  dollar  of 
the  board  due  at  the  Hotel. 

"All  that  I  can  secure  I  must  use  for  that  now.  So 
we  must  fain  submit  to  wait  until  the  way  is  open  and  the 
means  provided.  I  send  you  four  dollars — all  that  I 
have  excepting  some  small  change  that  I  can't  send  by 
mail.  I  shall  want  none  for  myself.  And  if  this  should 
not  be  sufficient  for  your  purposes,  get  what  you  want  and 
have  it  charged  to  me.  Any  of  the  Charlestown  merchants 
will  credit  me. 

"My  love,  you  will  not  allow  yourself  to  be  unhappy 
in  view  of  our  absence  from  each  other.     I  shall  love  you 

♦Charlestown  is  now  written  Charles  Town  to  prevent  its  being  confused 
with  Charleston,  a  city  in  the  same  state. 

37 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


as  much — or  more  than  if  I  were  with  you ;  for  I  know  that 
you  are  denying  yourself  and  submitting  to  this  painful 
separation  for  my  sake. ' ' 

The  publication  of  the  following  personal  letter 
as  well  as  the  preceding  one  is  almost  an  invasion  of 
the  sacred  precincts  of  the  inner  lives  of  this  j'-oung 
couple,  but  it  is  the  only  means  of  presenting  a  true 
picture  of  their  trials  and  re-creating  in  some  measure 
the  atmosphere  that  surrounded  them.  His  sacrifice 
and  faith  under  such  circumstances  will  hearten  and 
strengthen  others  who  are  following  in  the  way  which 
he  trod  in  pain.  The  spirit  of  Paul  whom  he  made 
the  subject  of  his  profoundest  study  and  his  most 
reverent  thought  reveals  itself  in  these  words  which 
give  the  relative  values  of  the  present  life  and  the 
one  to  come : 

"  My  thoughts  have  been  of  you  and  the  longings  of  my 
heart  have  been  towards  you.  Life  is  almost  burdensome 
and  but  for  the  unfailing  resource  of  Christianity  I  could 
not  endure  my  present  position.  But  God,  who  'tempers 
the  wind  to  the  shorn  lamb, '  does  not  forsake  me.  And 
very  often  when  most  depressed  and  almost  in  despair, 
there  is  a  sudden,  almost  overwhelming  manifestation  of 
my  Saviour  to  my  consciousness  that  dispels  all  gloom  and 
calms  my  troubled  heart.  I  can  almost  say  with  Paul, 
'  I  glory  in  tribulations ' — '  I  glory  in  mine  infirmities  that 
the  power  of  Christ  may  rest  upon  me. ' 

"You  see  I  am  learning  those  lessons  of  wisdom  that 
may  be  derived  from  every  trouble  and  that  in  the  end 
cause  us  to  thank  God  for  the  trouble.  Most  certainly 
the  peace  of  God  that  passeth  all  understanding  strangely 
keeps  my  heart  and  mind  and  whatever  the  result  of  this 
dispensation  may  be  I  shall  enjoy  the  consciousness  that 
I  have  done  my  duty  and,  if  it  end  only  with  death,  my 
paean  of  victory  shall  ring  from  my  lips — '  I  have  fought 
a  good  fight,  I  have  finished  my  course,  I  have  kept  the 

38 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


faith. '  And  will  not  you,  my  love,  join  with  me  in  the 
triumph?  Would  you  not  partake  with  me  in  the  joy  of 
any  great  success  here?  And  in  this  greatest  of  all 
triumphs — the  success  of  life — the  achievement  of  its 
glorious  purposes — ought  not  and  would  not  your  heart, 
quail  as  it  might  in  view  of  the  sad  separation — would  it 
not  yet  swell  with  delight  at  the  triumph  and  in  view  of 
the  glorious  results  to  be  realized  in  another  and  nobler 
life?" 

Despite  his  trials  he  had  a  most  successful  year 
on  Warm  Springs  Circuit.  He  knew  nothing  of  the 
arts  of  the  diplomat  in  preaching,  but  like  the  prophets 
of  old  cried  aloud  and  spared  not.  He  condemned  sin 
and  proclaimed  the  atonement  of  Christ  and  the 
regeneration  of  the  Holy  Spirit  as  its  only  cure  for 
the  sinner.  In  speaking  to  a  friend  of  the  last 
sermon  he  expected  to  preach  on  the  work,  he  said : 

"My  topic  will  be  the  'Sins,  punishment  and  pleas  of 
the  Church. '  'What  wilt  thou  say  when  He  shall  punish 
thee?'  my  text.  If  they  have  never  thought  and  felt 
before,  they  shall  do  it  next  Sunday — God  being  my 
helper." 

There  was  a  strong  movement  for  his  return 
headed  by  men  whom  he  thought  he  had  mortally 
offended  by  his  preaching,  some  of  them  promising 
if  the  Conference  sent  back  this  fearless  denouncer 
of  sin  and  advocate  of  truth  to  increase  their  sub- 
scriptions five-fold.  He  was  amazed  at  his  popu- 
larity and  wrote  concerning  it : 

"God  has  strangely  given  me  the  hearts  of  the  people. 
It  is  a  perfect  mystery  to  me.  I  have  been  a  poor  pastor. 
You  would  pronounce  me  yourself  unsociable  and  rather 
reserved  in  manner  and  character.  Many  better  preachers 
than  I  have  served  the  same  people  and  been  within  their 

39 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


reach  for  another  term.  But  I  have  yet  to  travel  a  circuit 
when  I  was  not  asked  to  return.  I  have  acquired  an  in- 
fluence and  power  over  the  people  that  others  far  superior 
to  me  have  failed  to  secure.  How  is  it?  Not  by  pulpit 
power  certainly — not  by  the  '  winningness '  of  manner — 
not  by  any  effort  on  my  part — for  I  have  never  sought 
or  deserved  such  popularity.  It  is  altogether  incompre- 
hensible to  me.  As  regards  my  return  here,  I  can  only 
repeat  what  I  have  said  before.  I  leave  it  to  Providence 
to  control  the  matter.  If  sent  back  without  a  word  for 
or  against  it  on  my  part,  I  shall  come  willingly.  The 
future  direction  of  events  and  their  issue  I  must  leave  to 
the  same  Power  above. " 

Notwithstanding  the  desire  for  his  return  and 
his  willingness  to  be  returned  to  Warm  Springs,  the 
Conference  following  its  godly  judgment  sent  young 
Wilson  to  Blue  Sulphur,  a  circuit  in  the  same  general 
neighborhood  but  paying  a  much  larger  salary — 
$250  all  told. 

On  Blue  Sulphur  he  had  a  notable  revival  at 
Asbury,  one  of  the  appointments,  in  which  many 
substantial  people  were  converted,  the  father  of  Rev. 
John  A.  Anderson  of  the  Baltimore  Conference 
being  among  them.  The  holy  influences  of  this 
meeting  Hnger  today  in  that  community  as  an  abiding 
benediction. 

In  after  years  as  Bishop,  he  recalled  those  days 
marked  by  supernatural  power,  his  memory  retaining 
the  most  vivid  impressions  of  them.  On  one 
occasion  he  spoke  of  them  in  this  manner : 

"When  I  was  a  young  preacher,  I  couldn't  do  much 
preaching,  but  they  bore  with  me.  I  was  wandering  along 
there  on  the  mountains  of  Western  Virginia,  telling  them 
what  I  knew,  which  wasn't  much,  about  the  gospel,  when 
one  of  the  most  remarkable  revivals,  the  most  remarkable, 

40 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


I  may  say,  broke  out,  under  my  ministry  in  an  isolated 
region  up  in  the  mountains  of  one  of  the  counties  of 
Western  Virginia,  Greenbrier  County  in  West  Virginia 
now.  It  was  nothing  but  a  little  pretty-well-worn-out 
shanty.  It  represented  fairly  the  average  life  of  the 
community.  Their  homes  were  very  much  of  the  same 
grade  and  style.  We  had  the  rough  wooden  seats,  without 
backs  to  them;  and  it  had  one  of  the  high  pulpits — box 
pulpit — and  it  had  no  chancel  railing  at  all,  just  a  few 
seats  set  along  there  when  the  sacrament  was  to  be 
administered;  but  I  saw  that  house,  night  after  night  for 
a  month,  ablaze  with  the  glory  of  God  as  I  never  saw  any 
other  building  on  earth ;  and  I  heard  there  songs  that  had 
never  been  sung  in  any  of  the  costlier  temples  of  earth, 
and  men  got  down  there  and  lost  themselves,  absolutely 
and  completely,  in  their  consciousness  and  sense  of  God's 
presence  and  God's  overwhelming  power  working  in  them; 
I  say,  I  saw  that  thing  going  on  night  after  night,  for 
weeks  and  weeks  together. 

"It  was  a  marvelous  thing.  It  was  in  the  fall  when 
the  wonderful  comet  spread  through  the  skies,  in  1858; 
it  lightened  my  way  to  church  night  after  night.  It 
spread  out  there  as  perhaps  the  most  magnificent  attesta- 
tion of  God's  sense  of  majesty  and  beauty  that  had  ever 
flashed  across  the  sky.  It  was  a  wonderful  thing,  with 
its  great,  long,  saber-like  tail  that  reached  almost  across 
the  horizon,  while  its  central  glory  reached  up  into  mid 
heaven,  and  that  followed  me  night  after  night,  and  under 
the  inspiration  of  a  scene  like  that,  I  went  into  this — almost 
a  hovel,  very  little  better — where  the  people  gathered 
crowded,  where  they  had  to  come  miles  to  it,  and  there 
settled  to  hear  the  Word  of  God,  and  they  fell  in  trances, 
and  they  shook,  and  hundreds  were  converted  there  in 
that  sparsely-settled  community." 

In  1859,  failing  in  health,  which  had  never  been 
robust,  he  took  a  supernumerary  relation,  moved  to 
Baltimore  and  held  an  official  connection  with  what 
was  then  known  as  Columbia  Street  Church. 


41 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


In  1860,  he  again  entered  the  effective  ranks  and 
was  stationed  at  the  historic  Eutaw  Street  Church, 
Bahimore,  beneath  whose  pulpit  the  bones  of  Asbury 
had  reposed  for  forty  years  and  under  whose  roof 
some  of  the  momentous  gatherings  of  early  Method- 
ism had  been  held. 


42 


1.  Mary  Lipscomb,  Sister  of  Mrs.  Wilson  (Mks.  Thomas  Fitzgerald) 

2.  Rev.  and  Mrs.  Philip  Lipscomu,  Parents  of  Mrs.  Wilson 

3.  Rev.  and  Mrs.  A.  W.  Wilson  (1857)^the  year  of  their  marriage 

4.  A.  W.  Wilson  and  his  little  sister-in-law,  Nannie  Lipscomb 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Perilous   Days   of   the   Sixties   and   Southern 
Methodism  in  Baltimore. 

It  is  necessary  at  this  point  to  introduce  a  seg- 
ment of  Baltimore  Conference  history  to  account  for 
the  isolated  position  of  Bishop  Wilson  and  several 
other  preachers  in  Baltimore  during  the  "War  Be- 
tween the  States,"  and  their  service  in  heartening 
and  conserving  the  forces  that  established  Southern 
Methodism  a  few  years  later  in  that  city. 

When  the  General  Conference  of  1844  divided  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  the  Baltimore  Con- 
ference adhered  to  the  Church,  North,  but  at  its 
session  held  in  Staunton,  Virginia,  in  the  spring  of 
1861,  it  severed  its  relation  from  the  Buffalo  General 
Conference  of  that  Church.  The  outbreak  of  the 
war  and  the  estabHshment  of  military  lines  between 
Virginia  and  Maryland  prevented  the  Conference 
from  holding  its  next  session  in  Baltimore  as  had  been 
previously  determined. 

A  part  of  a  statement  of  our  work  in  Baltimore, 
prepared  by  Rev.  Thos.  E.  Carson,  at  the  request  of 
Bishop  Wilson,  is  reprinted  from  the  Conference  War 
Minutes.  It  describes  an  unparalleled  situation  in 
the  history  of  Ivlethodism — three  Conferences  bear- 
ing the  same  name  meeting  in  the  spring  of  1862. 

"Three  Conferences,"  according  to  the  statement, 
"each  composed  of  a  part  of  the  one  Baltimore  Conference, 
as  it  was  in  Staunton  the  year  before,  met  at  the  time  ap- 
pointed, March,  1862,  in  as  many  different  places.     One  in 

43 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Harrisonburg,  Va. ;  another  in  Baltimore  City,  Light  Street 
M.  E.  Church,  and  the  third  in  the  same  city,  in  the  count- 
ing-room of  a  friendly  merchant.  The  first  _  (Harrison- 
burg) was  composed  of  a  majority  of  the  Baltimore  Con- 
ference, and  it  held  firmly  to  its  action  of  the  year  before 
in  Staunton,  Va.  The  second  met  under  the  authority  of 
the  M.  E.  Church— its  discipline  of  1860— which  had  been 
rejected  the  year  before  by  a  large  majority  of  the  body  as 
whole.  The  third,  composed  of  five  members,  met  in  full 
sympathy  and  accord  with  the  Virginia  part  of  the  Con- 
ference and  under  the  authority  of  the  discipHne  of  1856. 

"The  Conference  that  met  in  Light  Street  Church, 
Baltimore,  had  presented  for  its  action  a  resolution,  in 
substance  as  follows : 

'"That,  as  the  unavoidable  absence  of  the  Ministers 
and  Members  of  the  Conference  within  the  Confederate 
lines  would  prevent  their  concurrence  in  any  action  in 
reference  to  the  resolutions  adopted  at  the  Staunton^  Con- 
ference, therefore  nothing  should  be  done  inconsistent 
therewith,  and  that  we  agree  to  await  the  time  when  the 
entire  Conference  can  meet  again  in  peace  and  harmony.' 

"  It  so  happened  that  the  Staunton  minority  of  '61  was 
the  Baltimore  majority  of  '62,  and  the  proposal  was 
promptly  rejected  by  the  Conference,  and  an  action  was 
taken  'to  repudiate,  as  null  and  void,  the  action  of  the 
Baltimore  Conference  at  Staunton,  and  to  consider _  all 
members,  not  answering  to  their  names,  as  having  with- 
drawn from  the  Church. '  In  anticipation  of  a  probable 
action  of  this  kind,  and  to  be  consistent  with  the  action  of 
the  Staunton  Conference,  the  five  preachers  composing  the 
third  Conference  of  that  date  were  not  present  at  the 
Light  Street  Conference  on  roll  call,  nor  took  part  in  any 
of  its  proceedings.  They,  with  their  Virginia  brethren, 
were  pronounced  '  Withdrawn. ' 

Perhaps  the  source  of  the  greatest  embarrassment 
to  this  Conference  was  the  fact  that  it  was  without 
a  journal.  John  8.  Martin,  the  secretary  of  the 
Conference  of  1861,  was  in  charge  of  the  records. 

44 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


He  had  been  pastor  of  the  Charles  Street  Church,  but 
when  the  long  expected  hostilities  commenced,  he 
succeeded  in  reaching  Virginia  and  subsequently  the 
records  succeeded  in  following  him. 

He  did  not  take  these  records  with  him,  as  was 
supposed,  but  left  them  in  the  care  of  Rev.  J.  W. 
Perry.  For  safe  keeping,  Mr.  Perry  took  them  to 
the  Eutaw  Street  parsonage  and  made  Rev.  A.  W. 
Wilson,  the  pastor,  their  custodian. 

Shortly  afterward,  the  Federal  authorities  (Bal- 
timore was  at  that  time  under  military  rule),  at  the 
behest  of  the  Church,  North,  tried  to  get  them,  and 
searched  the  parsonage  in  vain.  Rev.  A.  W.  Wilson 
had  seen  the  drift  and  had  them  removed  and  hidden 
in  a  cotton  warehouse,  with  the  consent  of  one  of  its 
owners,  Dr.  Thomas  E.  Bond.  At  the  proper  time 
they  were  boxed  and  shipped  to  Dr.  Martin  via 
Fortress  Monroe,  who  received  them  safe  and  sound 
at  his  home  in  Lexington,  Virginia.  The  Bishop 
laughingly  told  the  author  not  long  ago  how  he  had 
outwitted  the  Federal  officers  by  sending  these 
records  to  the  warehouse  in  a  cart,  having  carefully 
covered  them  with  tarpaulin. 

At  the  General  Conference  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  in  1864,  the  Committee  on  Annual 
Conference  Journals  reported  that  the  journals  of  all 
the  Conferences  were  before  them,  except  those  of 
the  Baltimore  Conference,  which,  it  stated,  "were 
stolen  by  one  J.  S.  Martin. "  But  at  the  Centennial 
Conference,  which  met  in  Baltimore  in  1884,  in 
which  both  Churches  participated,  this  same  J.  S. 
Martin  was  unanimously  elected  secretary.  It  does 
not  seem  that  the  alleged    crime  of    1862  was  re- 


45 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


membered  against  Dr.  Martin  by  the  brethren  of  the 
other  side.  Dr.  Martin  was  a  prominent  member  of 
our  Conference  and  its  efficient  secretary  to  the  time 
of  his  death;  his  commanding  personaUty,  his  deep 
rotund  voice,  and  his  rare  quaUties  of  heart  and 
mind  made  him  a  preacher  who  never  failed  to  com- 
mand the  interest  and  admiration  of  men,  and  to  win 
them  to  the  kingdom  of  Christ. 

Of  course,  the  action  of  Rev.  A.  W.  Wilson  in 
declining  to  affiliate  with  the  new  Conference  and 
firmly  adhering  to  the  old  one  cost  him  his  pastorate 
of  the  Eutaw  Street  Church.  With  Revs.  Ezra  F. 
Busey,  Thomas  E.  Carson,  William  J.  Perry,  and 
John  A.  Williams,  kindred  spirits,  who  also  were 
caught  in  Mar^dand  when  the  miHtary  Hnes  were 
drawn,  he  remained  in  Baltimore  during  the  war. 
A.  W.  Wilson  and  his  associates  naturally  formed  the 
leadership  of  the  little  band  of  Methodists  who  con- 
tinued loyal  to  the  old  Conference  which  was  com- 
pelled to  hold  its  war  sessions  in  Virginia.  His  in- 
vincibiUty  in  argument,  his  genius  for  organization, 
his  fearlessness  in  the  cause  of  truth,  and  his  martyr- 
like spirit  for  the  right,  made  him  conspicuous  in  the 
public  eye  as  a  young  man  of  unusual  parts.  These 
five  preachers  held  the  third  Conference  with  Rev. 
Ezra  F.  Busey,  much  the  senior  of  the  others,  acting 
as  president — a  Conference  notable  for  its  uniqueness 
of  character.  The  business  session  took  the  form  of 
several  questions  with  answers  which  were  fraught 
with  far-reaching  consequences  to  our  work  in 
Maryland. 

The  interest  that  attaches  itself  to  them  after  a 
half  century  may  justify  their  publication  here. 

46 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


"Question  1st.  Shall  we  attend  as  members  of  the 
Baltimore  Conference  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  now  in  ses- 
sion in  the  Light  Street  Church  ? 

"Answer.  We  cannot,  if  we  still  hold  to  our  Annual 
Conference  action  and  still  believe  the  Buffalo  General 
Conference  did  wrong  to  this  section  of  the  church  by  its 
'New  Chapter'  enactment. 

"Question  2nd.  What  shall  be  our  attitude  toward 
our  brethren  in  Virginia,  who,  because  of  the  war,  are 
unable  to  meet  in  Baltimore  at  this  time  as  agreed  upon 
last  year? 

"Answer.  We  shall  hold  firmly  to  our  connection 
with  them,  and  act  for  the  church  in  harmony  with  them, 
as  far  as  possible,  till  we  may  again  come  together  in  one 
body. 

"Question  3rd.  What  is  our  present  position  on  the 
question  of  separation  from  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church? 

' '  Answer.  We  see  no  reason  for  changing  our  opinion 
or  regretting  the  action  of  our  Conference  last  year. 

"Question  4th.  What  shall  be  our  relation  to  each 
other  as  preachers  ? 

"Answer.  We  shall  continue  as  heretofore — Brethren 
in  the  same  Church,  Conference  and  cause,  and  will  faith- 
fully stand  by  each  other  for  our  mutual  help,  as  need  may 
require  and  ability  serve.  We  will  also  co-operate  in  all 
ministerial  work. " 

Four  appointments  were  established,  at  each  of 
which  four  of  the  preachers  preached  in  turn;  the 
fifth,  Rev.  William  J.  Perry,  taught  a  school  for  his 
support.  The  work  was  rearranged  each  year  to 
meet  changing  conditions  until  18G6,  when  these 
preachers  had  the  opportunity  of  rejoining  their 
comrades  of  the  old  Baltimore  Conference.  During 
those  trying  times  in  Baltimore,  this  movement  was 
labeled  by  its  opposers  "organized  disloyalty,"  and 

47 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


young  Wilson  was  threatened  with  all  sorts  of  ills, 
including  hanging. 

A  few  months  before  his  death,  in  talking  of  his 
experiences  of  the  early  sixties,  the  Bishop  related  to 
the  writer  this  incident  of  a  crisis  upon  which  hinged 
the  fate  of  Southern  Methodism  in  Baltimore.  He 
said  that  one  day  he  met  one  of  his  officials  on  the 
street,  seemingly  agitated  and  not  going  in  the  direc- 
tion of  his  place  of  business;  a  little  later  he  met 
another  moving  in  the  same  direction,  and  naturally 
asked  him  what  was  the  matter.  He  was  informed 
that  these  two  gentlemen  had  called  a  meeting  of  the 
official  board  and  had  determined  to  disband  the 
organization,  as  they  could  not  longer  stand  the 
tremendous  pressure,  the  ver^^  safety  of  their  families 
being  hazarded  by  their  course.  But  the  intrepid 
preacher  replied :  ' '  You  can  do  what  you  please,  but 
you  have  no  authority  to  disband  the  organization. 
You  and  others  can  resign,  but  I  will  fill  your  places, 
and  the  work  shall  go  on.  I  will  preach  next  Sunday 
as  usual.  "  This  adamantine  attitude  of  their  young 
leader  so  strengthened  the  laymen  that  they  gave  up 
all  idea  of  disbanding. 

Nearly  every  sermon  was  preached  under  the 
espionage  of  a  military  spy.  Occasionally  uniformed 
officers  made  their  appearance  at  church.  One 
Sunday  night  when  Rev.  A.  W.  Wilson  was  preaching 
at  the  New  Assembly  rooms  to  a  large  congregation 
from  the  text,  "God  hath  not  given  us  the  spirit  of 
fear,"  etc.,  he  noticed  several  Federal  officers  enter 
the  hall.  Their  presence  caused  suppressed  excite- 
ment, as  it  was  thought  the  arrest  of  some  members 
of  the  congregation  was  their  mission.     The  minister 


48 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


paid  no  attention  to  them,  but  went  on  with  his 
service.  One  of  them  proved  to  be  Gen.  John  A. 
Dix,  who  when  urged  the  next  day  to  arrest  the 
preacher,  said:  "Gentlemen,  I  will  not  arrest  that 
man.  I  heard  him  preach  last  night,  and  if  his 
ministerial  accusers  had  preached  the  gospel  as  he 
preached  it,  we  should  not  have  had  this  war."  It 
might  be  interesting  to  know  that  General  Dix  was 
the  father  of  Dr.  Morgan  Dix,  for  many  years  the 
rector  of  Trinity  Church,  New  York;  and  it  is  reason- 
able to  believe  that  the  father  of  so  prominent  a 
churchman  was  a  competent  judge  of  gospel  preach- 
ing. 

It  may  not  be  without  interest  to  give  the  names 
of  those  who  formed  the  quarterly  Conference  in 
Baltimore  under  these  trying  conditions — a  Con- 
ference, composed  of  men  of  marked  intelligence  and 
loyalty  to  great  principles,  that  is  worthy  of  a  most 
honorable  place  in  the  history  of  our  Church.  The 
descendants  of  these  men  and  their  wives,  as  noble 
as  their  husbands,  can  feel  justly  proud  of  such  an 
ancestry.  Here  are  the  names  and  the  principles  to 
which  these  men  subscribed : 

John  M.  Buck,  Charles  J.  Baker,  John  W.  Bruff, 
Dr.  Alexander  F.  DuHn,  Samuel  G.  Miles,  J.  B. 
Brinkley,  Gersham  Broadbent,  Charles  Towson, 
Samuel  H.  Randall,  Leonard  Passano,  William  R. 
Barry,  the  Diggs  Brothers,  Charles  and  Joseph 
Shipley,  T.  J.  Magruder,  Thomas  Norris,  Daniel 
Shipley,  Elisha  Carback,  F.  A.  Lawrence,  Wesley 
Starr,  Carvill  H.  Carson,  Samuel  Burnette,  John  W. 
Massey,  William  J.  King,  Milton  D.  Mettee,  and 
John  C.  Smith.     With  these  laymen  were  associated 

49 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Revs.  J.  Newman  Hank,  Joseph  H.  Spangler  and 
John  Poisal,  supernumerary  preachers,  and  Rev. 
Thomas  E.  Bond,  M.  D.,  a  local  preacher. 

This  was  the  platform  upon  which  they  stood: 

"Resolved,  We  cannot  conscientiously  submit  to  the 
jurisdiction  of  the  Buffalo  General  Conference,  nor  become 
members  of  the  Church  under  the  new  Discipline  of  1860. 

"We  furthermore  avow  our  continued  adherence  to 
the  Discipline  of  1856.  We  acknowledge  no  other.  In 
this  position  as  a  Church  we  intend  to  stand,  being  in- 
fluenced by  no  political  consideration  whatever,  and  we 
and  other  churches  and  congregations  associated  with  us, 
assure  our  people  and  all  who  may  unite  with  us,  that 
there  shall  be  neither  political  nor  social  distinctions  in  our 
midst;  nor  will  any  interference  with  matters  of  state  be 
allowed  either  among  the  ministry  or  laity. 

"As  members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
independent  of  the  General  Conference  of  1860,  we  shall 
know  no  change  of  doctrine,  principles,  or  usages  of 
Methodism.  All  we  ask  of  the  ministry  is  to  confine 
themselves  exclusively  to  the  one  work  of  'spreading 
Scriptural  holiness  over  these  lands, '  and  preach  '  Christ 
and  Him  Crucified. ' " 

February  the  eighth,  1866,  was  a  happy  day  in 
Alexandria,  Virginia,  when  after  the  war  clouds  had 
disappeared,  and  peace  had  returned,  the  old  Balti- 
more Conference  united  with  Southern  Methodism, 
and  these  preachers  rejoined  their  comrades  of  other 
years  and  brought  this  body  of  faithful  laymen  under 
the  authority  and  administration  of  the  Church  of 
which  their  Conference  had  become  a  part. 

Dr.  John  J.  Lafferty,  that  past-master  in  the  art 
of  reminiscence,  was  present  at  the  gathering.  He 
has  left  on  record  a  graphic  description  of  that 
historic  Conference. 

50 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


"The  Virginia  section  of  their  Conference  had  been 
desolated.  The  Shenandoah  Valley  was  scorched  by 
cinders  of  bams,  mills  and  homes.  Hardly  a  hoof  was 
left  to  make  a  print  on  its  paths.  Casting  their  lot  in  with 
the  Southern  Methodists  would  provoke  personal  ostra- 
cism, political  persecution.  If  they  had  elected  to  follow 
their  late  comrades  into  the  Northern  Church,  their  way 
would  have  been  carpeted  with  flowers.  Missionary 
money  would  supply  salaries,  homes  and  Churches. 

"In  the  Church  at  Alexandria  came  to  pass  during  the 
sittings  of  this  body  an  event  illustrating  the  highest 
grandeur  of  the  soul.  A  member  of  the  Conference  was 
the  moderator.  The  roll  was  called;  name  by  name 
answering  affirmatively  for  association  with  the  Southern 
Church.  The  hour  and  act  were  surcharged  with  resolute 
purpose.  Cromwell's  Ironsides  never  bore  faces  more 
fixed  with  stern  decree  of  the  heart.  No  tear  swelled 
under  the  lid,  for  every  eye  glittered  like  a  sphere  of  fire. 

"When  the  list  of  ministers  had  been  recited  and  the 
vote  recorded,  it  remained  only  to  receive  a  bishop  of  the 
church  of  which  then  the  Baltimore  Conference  was  a 
part.  The  door  presently  stood  ajar.  Amid  profound 
silence  and  suppressed  emotion,  the  noble  presence  of 
Samuel  Regester,  with  a  certain  majestic  mien,  appeared. 
Behind  him  walked  John  Early,  bishop  of  the  Southern 
Methodist  Church.  Closely  after  came  the  superb  Roszel. 
There  was  utter  absence  of  ceremony.  The  dignity  of  the 
transaction  fell  in  fitly  with  this  quiet  gravity.  The . 
bishop  took  up  the  routine  of  the  session  as  if  the  issue 
could  not  have  been  otherwise.  And  it  could  not.  They 
enlisted  with  men  kindred  to  them  in  character  and  lofty 
impulse. 

"These  Christian  chieftains  charged  the  air  and 
audience  with  their  own  resolute  valor.  It  will  be  a 
distinct  loss,  if  the  achievements  wrought  by  this  band, 
with  these  centurions,  are  not  preserv'ed  on  the  unperishing 
parchment  of  pages  that  pass  through  the  printing  press. " 

There  is  pathos  in  the  pastoral  address  issued  by 
the   Conference   of   1866   to   its   constituents,    and 


51 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


martyr-like  devotion  to  duty  in  every  line.  These 
heroic  preachers  were  turning  their  faces  to  a  country 
of  smoking  ruins  and  desolate  hearthstones.  Its 
most  valued  possessions  had  been  swept  away. 
Nearly  every  home  was  a  place  of  mourning.  But 
God's  people  were  there  to  be  guided  and  comforted. 
A  paragraph  from  this  address  is  quoted  to  bring 
back  the  atmosphere  of  those  days. 

"Perhaps, "  it  says,  "when  you  receive  us  you  must  go 
away  from  the  houses  of  God  you  have  built,  from  the 
graveyards  you  have  enclosed  around  your  fondly  re- 
membered dead.  You  must  give  us  as  you  can  of  the 
little  oil  and  the  few  cakes  you  have.  Temporarily  you 
will  be  poorer  for  your  love  to  us.  In  all  worldly  respects 
you  will  find  us  anything  but  profitable.  But  we  know 
you,  and  God  knows  both  you  and  us.  We  solemnly  and 
fearlessly  appeal  our  cause  to  Him.  With  regard  to 
temporal  things.  He  shall  think  for  us.  We,  by  His  help, 
will  think  only  of  things  that  minister  to  salvation." 

This  record  would  be  lacking  in  completeness 
without  some  statement  of  A.  W.  Wilson's  relation 
and  contribution  to  Baltimore  Southern  Methodism 
since  the  time  he  took  such  a  prominent  part  in  its 
estabhshment.  He  was  peculiarly  identified  with  it, 
for  from  its  beginning  to  the  time  of  his  death,  with 
the  exception  of  a  few  years  his  residence  was  main- 
tained in  Baltimore  and  his  family  were  active 
members  of  Trinity  Church.  He  regarded  our 
Church  in  Baltimore  as  a  father  regards  a  loved 
child,  and  was  always  particularly  interested  in  the 
appointments  to  the  Baltimore  Churches. 

It  may  not  be  without  interest  to  speak  of  the 
growth  of  Baltimore  Southern  Methodism  so  long 
under  the  eye  of  Bishop  Wilson. 

52 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


As  is  well  known,  Baltimore  is  the  home  of  some 
of  the  most  notable  historic  shrines  of  American 
Methodism.  Methodism  took  a  deep  root  in  the 
monumental  cit^^  and  entered  so  vitally  into  its 
growth  and  development  that  Baltimore  has  become 
a  Methodist  stronghold  and  Methodism  a  tremendous 
factor  in  shaping  the  city's  Hfe.  MilHons  of  dollars 
are  invested  in  Methodist  churches,  parsonages  and 
schools.  More  than  forty  thousand  Methodist 
communicants  claim  Baltimore  as  their  home.  They 
are  distributed  among  the  Methodist  Episcopal,  the 
Methodist  Episcopal,  South,  the  Methodist  Pro- 
testant, the  Independent  Methodist,  the  African 
Methodist  and  the  Colored  Ivlethodist  Churches. 
Of  the  449  Churches,  Jewish,  CathoHc  and  Protes- 
tant, 175,  or  more  than  one-third,  are  Methodist. 
The  city  directory  lists  them  as  follows:  Methodist 
Episcopal  92;  Methodist  Protestant  27;  Methodist 
Episcopal,  South,  12;  Independent  Methodist  5; 
African  Methodist  16;  Colored  Methodist  23. 

Southern  Methodism,  through  all  the  years  with 
no  fanfare  or  pyrotechnic  displays,  has  quietly  done 
its  distinctive  work  in  Baltimore.  It  has  been 
making  a  progress  which,  though  necessarily  slow, 
has  been  sure  and  steady,  as  figures  will  show.  The 
Minutes  of  1866  report  that  when  the  Baltimore 
Conference  united  with  the  Church,  South,  there 
were  but  589  members  in  the  part  of  Maryland 
covered  by  the  Conference,  and  100  of  them  in 
Baltimore  divided  equally  between  Winan's  Chapel 
and  Central  Church.  Our  Church  had  many  friends 
who  were  members  of  the  Independent  Methodist 
Churches  which,  though  in  sympathy  with  our  cause, 

53 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


hesitated  to  become  identified  with  an  ecclesiastical 
organization  that  had  so  greatly  suffered  from  the 
ravages  of  war.  The  major  part  of  these  sympathetic 
friends  finally  came  to  us. 

The  question  may  be  asked,  where  at  that  time 
was  Trinity  Church  which  has  been  known  through- 
out the  connection  as  the  Bishop's  Church.  The 
answer  is  that,  though  the  present  Church  edifice 
was  erected  during  the  Conference  year  of  1864-1865, 
yet  for  prudential  reasons  it  was  not  incorporated 
under  the  name  of  any  organization  until  1868,  but 
was  held  by  some  of  its  members  as  their  private 
property.  In  that  year,  however,  articles  of  incor- 
poration were  obtained,  designating  this  religious 
enterprise  as  Trinity  Methodist  Church.  It  was  not 
until  1884  that  the  name  of  the  Church  became 
Trinity  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  South.  Strong 
but  futile  efforts  had  been  made  to  make  Trinity  in- 
dependent. A  modified  independency  existed  for  a 
while  because  of  prevailing  conditions,  but  the  con- 
gregation was  always  strongly  Southern  Methodist 
in  its  spirit  and  sympathies. 

In  1876,  a  decade  afterward,  our  membership  in 
Baltimore  had  grown  from  100  to  1,725  and  our 
charges  from  two  to  eight.  Our  churches  paid  for 
ministerial  support  $11,144. 

In  1886,  at  the  close  of  the  second  decade,  we  re- 
ported nine  charges,  2,034  members  and  $8,602  paid 
on  ministerial  support. 

In  1896,  after  another  period  of  ten  years,  the 
number  of  charges  remained  the  same,  but  the  mem- 
bership had  grown  to  2,555  and  the  amount  paid  on 
ministerial  support  was  $14,359. 


M 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


In  1906  the  charges  numbered  ten,  the  member- 
ship 2,418,  with  $11,563  paid  on  ministerial  support. 

Last  year  (1916)  at  the  close  of  the  half  century 
we  reported  twelve  churches  with  a  membership  of 
2,965  and  $15,122  paid  on  ministerial  support. 

Our  Churches  reported  at  the  Conference  of  1917 
which  recently  closed,  3,312  members  and  $15,416 
paid  on  ministerial  support  and  a  proportionate  in- 
crease along  all  lines. 

It  was  within  the  last  decade  that  St.  John's  In- 
dependent Methodist  Church  on  Madison  Avenue 
came  to  us  with  a  small  but  choice  membership,  and 
about  $40,000  worth  of  property.  The  action  of 
this  church  was  the  culmination  of  what  might  be 
called  a  religious  romance.  Our  Emmanuel  congre- 
gation had  had  its  church  edifice  condemned  by  the 
city  authorities  because  of  damage  caused  by  a  storm. 
It  was  invited  by  St.  John's  to  be  its  guest  with  the 
understanding  that  the  two  pastors  alternate  in 
conducting  the  services.  The  congregations  became 
closely  attached  and  decided  to  unite,  the  union 
being  known  as  St.  John's-Emmanuel  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church,  South. 

Has  Southern  Methodism  justified  its  existence 
by  its  fruits,  or  has  it  been  kept  alive  by  missionary 
subsidies  on  account  of  denominational  pride?  Cold 
statistics  will  tell.  During  the  half  century  the 
number  of  its  charges  has  increased  600  per  cent  and 
its  membership  nearly  3,000  per  cent.  No  percent- 
age of  increase  on  missions  or  ministerial  support  can 
be  obtained,  as  neither  item  is  reported  in  the  Minutes 
of  1866.  It  is  worthy  of  note  in  passing  to  state  that 
the  entire  Conference  reported  but  $454.12  for  mis- 


55 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


sions  in  1867,  but  the  sad  confession  was  made  by 
the  treasurer  that  $3.00  of  it  was  counterfeit.  Last 
year  the  Baltimore  Churches  contributed  $2,649  for 
missions,  and  $3,573  to  other  benevolences,  a  total 
of  $6,221  for  Conference  collections,  and  received 
$1,600  from  the  Conference  Mission  Board  to  help 
maintain  the  weaker  charges.  Therefore,  the  Balti- 
more Churches  not  only  paid  their  own  way  last  year 
but  contributed  between  $4,000  and  $5,000  in  ad- 
dition for  Conference  purposes.  The  other  years  will 
give  similar  results. 

From  the  standpoint  of  financial  considerations 
alone.  Southern  Methodism  in  Baltimore  is  a  profita- 
ble asset  of  the  Church,  South.  But  its  material 
contribution  to  the  general  Church  is  much  greater 
than  appears  from  its  ordinary  current  collections  as 
shown  by  the  foregoing. 

It  has  given  to  the  General  Board  of  Missions  the 
largest  gift  ever  received  in  its  history — the  Shiplev 
legacy  of  about  $180,000.  The  Board  of  Church 
Extension  and  other  Boards  have  profited  no  little 
from  contributions  from  this  city. 

It  has  given  to  the  Church  one  of  its  greatest 
missionary  agencies.  The  first  Woman's  Missionary 
Society  in  Southern  Methodism  was  organized  in 
Trinity  Church,  Baltimore,  in  the  sixties  under  the 
name  of  the  Woman's  Bible  Mission  Society.  Our 
other  churches  in  the  city  followed  the  example,  and 
subsequently  there  was  formed  a  federation  of 
Woman's  Missionary  Societies.  This  federation  was 
the  parent  of  the  Woman's  Board  of  Foreign  Mis- 
ions  organized  by  the  General  Conference  in  1878. 


56 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


It  has  given  to  our  cause  preachers  who  have 
occupied  and  are  occupying  positions  of  large  re- 
sponsibiHty  throughout  the  Church. 

Our  latest  enterprise  is  the  Alpheus  W.  Wilson 
Memorial,  located  on  University  Parkway  and 
Charles  Street,  opposite  Home  wood  Park,  the  new 
home  of  the  Johns  Hopkins  University,  in  the  most 
beautiful  section  of  the  city.  Its  congregation  is 
preparing  to  build  the  first  unit  of  a  church  which 
when  completed  will  cost  at  least  $100,000.  This 
church  will  fittingly  perpetuate  the  name  of  our  great 
Bishop  and  suitably  care  for,  not  only  our  own 
people  in  that  part  of  Baltimore,  but  also  for  Sou- 
thern Methodist  students  who  come  to  this  world- 
renowned  University  for  literary  and  scientific  train- 
ing. The  leaders  of  this  church  are  among  our 
choicest  men  and  women  and  are  intelligently  direct- 
ing their  energies,  under  the  leadership  of  their 
pastor,  to  the  consummation  of  this  enterprise. 
This  church  will  not  only  be  monumental  in  character 
but  of  large  utilitarian  value,  for  it  will  greatly 
strengthen  and  conserve  our  Church  in  this  historic 
city  of  Methodism. 

Southern  Methodists  of  Baltimore  are  necessarily 
of  a  heroic  type  or  they  would  not  be  Southern 
Methodists.  The  pastors  are  picked  men  chosen  to 
lead  the  people.  With  charity  for  all  and  malice 
toward  none,  our  Methodism  in  Baltimiore  is  main- 
taining the  faith  of  its  fathers  and  preaching  the 
pure  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  which  it  believes  is  the 
sovereign  remedy  for  all  the  ills  of  suffering,  sorrow- 
ing men. 

57 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


In  1916,  fifty  years  after  the  Conference  had 
united  with  Southern  Methodism,  the  body  met  in 
Alexandria,  in  the  same  church  where  this  historic 
event  took  place,  and  observed  the  Golden  Anniver- 
sary of  the  occasion.  Bishop  Wilson  was  to  have 
made  the  principal  address,  but  he  was  ill  at  his  home 
in  Baltimore.  He  sent  this  message  by  the  writer 
to  Conference,  having  dictated  it  when  he  was  suf- 
fering so  much  pain  that  he  could  scarcely  speak. 
It  proved  to  be  the  last  he  ever  sent  to  the  body  and 
was  his  parting  benediction. 

The  Message. 

"In  much  pain  I  dictate  this  message.  I  regret  that 
I  cannot  be  with  you  and  share  the  pleasure  and  profit  of 
your  happy  occasion.  I  congratulate  you  upon  a  half- 
century's  successful  work.  The  past  should  stimulate 
you  to  larger  endeavors  for  the  future.  May  the  blessing 
of  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church  continue  to  rest  upon 
you. 

Affectionately  your  brother, 

A.  W.  Wilson." 

This  chapter  cannot  be  more  appropriately 
closed  than  with  a  paper  which  can  be  aptly  entitled 
"The  Beginning  of  Southern  Methodism  in  Balti- 
more," written  by  Bishop  Wilson  in  the  fall  of  1865, 
when  the  events  were  fresh  in  his  memory,  and  found 
among  his  effects  after  his  death.  The  paper  is 
pubHshed  as  it  was  written,  except  the  full  name 
when  known  is  printed  in  parentheses  following  the 
initials  used  in  the  paper.  It  clearly  shows  that  the 
attitude  of  the  writer  to  the  institution  of  an  in- 
dependent Methodism  at  that  time  was  not  of  the 
most  friendly  character. 

58 


1.  Hon.  Thomas  Wilson,  Grandf.athpr  of  Bishop  Wilson 

2.  Rev.  Norv.\l  Wilso.v,  Father  of  Bisliop  Wilson 

3.  S.VHAH  Louise  Wilso.v,  SisU-r  of  Bishop  Wilson 

4.  Cornelia  Howland,  Wife  of  Captain  Daniel  Howland, 

Grandmother  of  Bishop  Wilson 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


"On  Wednesday  evening,  March  19,  pursuant  to 
adjournment,  the  meeting  was  held  at  Northwestern  Hall 
on  Biddle  St.  and  Rev.  A.  W.  W.  (Rev.  A.  W.  Wilson) 
having  been  invited  to  attend  stated  the  purpose  had  in 
view  in  the  organization  of  what  was  shortly  known  as 
Central  M.  E.  Church,  distinctly  disavowing  any  pur- 
pose of  assuming  an  independent  position  and  declaring 
the  connection  of  that  body  with  the  Baltimore  Conference. 
The  action  was  traced  back  to  and  connected  with  the 
session  of  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  at  Staunton 
in  1861  and  declared  to  be  the  result  of  the  legislation  of 
the  General  Conference  of  1860.  It  will  be  seen  from  the 
records  of  this  meeting  that  discussion  was  had  upon  the 
"proper  basis  for  the  formation  of  a  congregation,"  the 
most  of  the  views  expressed  in  which  differed  essentially 
from  those  expressed  at  the  former  meeting  and  embodied 
in  the  resolution  then  passed,  and  that  with  a  view  to  the 
better  understanding  of  the  action  of  the  meeting  at  New 
Assembly  Rooms  Rev.  A.  W.  Wilson  was  requested  to 
explain  it.  It  also  appears  from  the  verbal  report  of  com- 
mittee appointed  to  wait  on  Rev.  J.  H.  D.  that  he  would 
consent  to  become  Pastor  only  on  condition  that  a  separate 
and  distinct  independent  congregation  was  formed.  As 
the  idea  of  independence  was  not  maintained  and  he  was 
not  called  to  be  Pastor,  the  fair  inference,  nay,  the  ir- 
resistible conclusion  is  that  the  meeting  looked  to  the 
maintenance  of  the  connectional  relation.  Accordingly 
a  committee  was  appointed  for  the  purpose  brought  in  a 
report  at  a  meeting  held  March  26th  in  the  following 
words : 

"'The  undersigned  committee  appointed  by  the  con- 
gregation which  met  at  the  Northwestern  Hall,  Biddle  St., 
on  the  19th  inst.  to  suggest  a  basis  of  subsequent  operations 
respectfully  recommend  an  organization  in  affiliation  with 
the  Central  Church  New  Assembly  Rooms  which  report 
was  adopted  and  the  congregation  continued  in  said  con- 
nection for  about  two  \^ears. 

"  'In  the  early  part  of  1864,  the  churches  thus  organized 
having  been  repeatedly  subjected  to  the  t^'rannous  in- 


60 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


terference  of  the  military  authorities  of  this  city,  serious 
apprehension  began  to  be  entertained  that  their  avowed 
connection  with  an  ecclesiastical  denomination  in  the 
South  would  be  seized  upon  as  a  pretext  by  the  military 
rulers  for  breaking  them  up,  and  resolutions  were  offered 
in  the  Official  Meeting  of  the  Church  looking  to  a  tempo- 
rary dissolution  of  that  connection. 

'"Owing  to  an  unfortunate  misunderstanding  the  first 
series  of  resolutions  v/ith  this  object  in  view  was  ruled  out 
of  order;  but  at  an  adjourned  meeting  of  the  Quarterly 
Conference  a  few  nights  subsequent,  similar  resolutions 
were  offered  and  adopted  with  but  one  dissenting  voice. 
It  was  then  distinctly  avowed  and  understood  that  this 
separation  was  but  temporary  and  occasioned  by  the 
pressure  to  which  they  were  subjected  under  military 
rule.  It  may  be  stated  here  in  corroboration  of  the  fore- 
going that  the  movers  of  the  first  and  second  series  of 
resolutions,  J.  M.  B.  and  J.  P.  L.  (There  is  some  uncer- 
tainty about  the  latter  initials,  as  they  are  almost  illeg- 
ible. Author),  were  both  thorough  advocates  of  a  re- 
sumption of  the  connectional  status  at  the  earliest  practi- 
cable period,  never  conceived  the  idea  of  permanent  in- 
dependence and  are  both  now  in  connection  with  the  M. 
E.  C.  S. (Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  South.) 

'"The  erection  of  this  congregation  into  a  separate 
charge  as  shown  in  the  report  of  the  meeting  held  March 
23,  1864,  was  not  intended  to  alter,  nor  did  it  alter  the 
purpose  hitherto  expressed  and  still  and  until  a  much 
later  date  held  by  the  majority  of  those  now  seeking  to 
maintain  a  permanently  independent  organization.  It 
will  be  seen  from  that  report  that  the  male  members  at 
Biddle  St.  made  a  request  to  be  set  off,  whichwas  granted 
by  Quarterly  Conference  of  Central  and  official  body  was 
requested  to  organize  the  church  which  was  done.  This 
organization  was  effected  under  the  provisions  of  the 
Discipline  of  the  M.  E.  Church  of  1856,  which  having  been 
recognized  as  the  law  under  which  the  Baltimore  Con- 
ference should  act  during  its  isolation,  had  been  adopted 
by  the  male  members  in  so  far  as  it  suited  their  circum- 
stances.'" 

61 


CHAPTER  V. 

The  Law  and  the  Gospel. 

In  1866,  Rev.  A.  W.  Wilson  took  a  superannuate 
relation  and  chose  Baltimore  as  his  home.  In  1867, 
1868  and  1869  he  was  listed  as  a  supernumerary. 
During  these  four  years  of  cessation  from  the  labors 
of  the  itinerant  ministry,  in  order  to  pay  his  debts 
incurred  during  the  war,  he  studied  law,  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  Baltimore  bar,  and  practiced  with  his 
brother-in-law  John  D.  Lipscomb,  the  style  of  the 
firm  being  Wilson  and  Lipscomb. 

He  was  not  long  in  winning  recognition  at  the 
bar,  and  establishing  for  himself  a  wide  reputation  as 
a  lawyer  of  no  mean  ability.  Had  he  remained  in 
the  legal  profession  he  would  have  probably  been  a 
commanding  occupant  of  the  bench,  for  his  keen 
analytical  mind,  his  habit  of  thoroughness,  his  dis- 
cipline and  training  admirably  fitted  him  for  the 
judgeship. 

But  in  1870,  when  he  had  in  hand  the  receipts  for 
his  last  debts,  he  yielded  to  the  counsel  of  his  friends 
and  the  voice  of  his  conscience,  and  once  more  en- 
tered the  active  ranks.  It  is  noteworthy  that  just 
before  starting  for  Conference  to  take  an  appoint- 
ment he  declined  a  retainer  in  a  single  case  larger  in 
amount  than  the  highest  salary  paid  in  the  Con- 
ference. His  time  spent  in  the  study  and  practice  of 
law  was  not  lost  to  the  Church.  Some  one  has  said 
that  a  peculiar  providence  influenced  his  retirement 
for  a  time  from  the  active  ministry,  for,  being  endowed 

62 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


with  a  legal  mind,  this  early  experience  enabled  him 
to  render  great  service  to  the  Church  in  after  years. 

At  this  Conference  the  Bishop  appointed  him 
presiding  elder  of  the  Washington  District  to  which 
he  was  reappointed  in  1871  and  1872. 

In  1873  he  became  pastor  of  Mt.  Vernon  Place 
Church,  Washington,  and  continued  in  this  pastorate 
for  four  years,  rendering  invaluable  service  to  that 
congregation  in  the  national  capital  in  those  days 
following  reconstruction. 

The  perilous  financial  condition  of  our  Washing- 
ton church  demanded  the  strongest  leadership 
obtainable.  Indeed,  this  condition  called  for  a 
special  communication  from  the  bishops  to  the 
General  Conference  of  1874.  The  message  was  pre- 
sented and  read  by  Bishop  Marvin  in  behalf  of  his 
colleagues,  and  was  received  and  unanimously 
endorsed  by  the  Conference. 

The  paper  exhorted  the  whole  Church  to  come  to 
the  reUef  of  the  Washington  enterprise.  It  is  of 
historic  interest  and  is  well  worth  reprinting,  par- 
ticularly at  this  time,  when  the  faith  and  heroic 
struggles  of  our  fathers  have  been  rewarded  by  a  dream 
in  marble  with  architectural  proportions  in  which  are 
exquisitely  blended  grace,  symmetry,  beauty  and 
strength — a  substantial  expression  of  the  interest  of 
Southern  Methodism  in  its  work  at  the  national 
capital. 

"Communication  in  Reference  to  the  Church 
IN  Washington,  D.  C. 

"To  the  members  of  the  General  Conference: 

"Dear  Brethren: — Our  attention  has  been  called  to  the 
financial  condition  of  our  Church  in  Washington  City,  and 


63 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


from  a  consideration  of  the  facts  in  the  case,  we  deem  the 
matter  of  sufficient  importance  to  demand  your  attention 
at  this  time. 

"Our  brethren  there  undertook,  soon  after  the  war, 
when  tncy  were  few  in  number,  to  build  a  house  which 
should  meet,  not  their  own  needs  only,  but  also  the  wants 
of  our  people  who  might  have  occasion  to  visit  the  national 
capital.  For  this  purpose  they  made  an  outlay  far  beyond 
their  own  ability  to  meet,  and  up  to  this  time  have  been 
carrying  a  burden  of  debt  too  grievous  to  be  borne.  While 
the  house  represents  us  respectably,  yet,  considered  as  a 
representative  building  at  the  great  central  point  of  the 
whole  countn^  it  is  far  from  being  extravagant. 

"In  carrying  this  great  burden  of  debt  our  brethren 
have  been  compelled  to  look  abroad  for  aid;  but  up  to  this 
time  the  response  has  been  sufificient  only  to  meet  ac- 
cruing interest,  and  reduce  the  debt  by  a  very  small 
amount. 

"This  debt  is  a  distressing  incubus  upon  the  local 
Church,  which  bears  the  weight  of  it,  making  development 
and  progress  almost  impossible.  Indeed,  it  is  a  matter  of 
very  painful  solicitude  with  those  immediately  concerned. 

"Let  it  be  remembered  that  this  debt  was  created  in  the 
interest  of  the  Church  at  large,  and  that  it  meets  a  demand 
which  all  feel  to  be  imperative.  It  supplies  our  own 
people  visiting  Washington  City  with  the  ministry  of  the 
Church  of  their  choice.  Let  it  be  remembered,  also,  that 
our  brethren  there  contributed  freely  at  the  first,  and  have 
now  patiently,  for  some  years,  borne  up  under  this  most 
trying  embarrassment." 

In  response  to  the  author's  request  for  informa- 
tion concerning  Dr.  Wilson's  Washington  pastorate, 
Mr.  James  T.  Petty,  one  of  the  old  and  prominent 
members  of  Mt.  Vernon  Place  Church,  has  wTitten  a 
delightful  letter  in  which  he  speaks  of  his  association 
with  Dr.  Wilson  when  pastor  of  the  Church.  The 
letter  is  given  a  place  in  this  chapter. 


64 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


"Responding  as  best  I  may  to  your  recent  request,  I 
beg  to  say  that  my  recollection  of  the  late  beloved  and 
lamented  Bishop  Alpheus  W.  Wilson  reaches  back  to  a 
day  in  August,  1848,  and  to  a  camp  meeting  at  Stafford 
Court  House,  Virginia,  which  both  of  us  attended,  and  at 
which  both  of  us  were  converted.  Rev.  Norval  Wilson, 
father  of  the  Bishop,  who  was  then  stationed  at  Fredericks- 
burg, was  in  charge  of  the  camp. 

"It  was  an  old-fashioned  Methodist  meeting,  of  the 
type  then  in  vogue,  but  rare  if  not  unknown  in  this  day 
and  generation,  with  a  crowded  mourners'  bench  sur- 
rounded by  a  jubilant  band  of  earnest,  consecrated  men 
and  women,  who  made  the  air  vocal  with  their  songs  of 
praise,  and  whose  prayers  were  so  filled  with  the  love  of 
God  that 

"'Heaven  came  down  their  souls  to  greet, 
While  glory  crowned  the  mercy-seat. ' 

"Amid  such  congenial  surroundings  it  followed  natural- 
ly that  two  youths — he  was  several  years  my  senior — 
trained,  as  we  had  been,  in  Christian  homes,  where  the 
family  altar  held  without  challenge  the  highest  place  of 
honor,  and  where  the  very  atmosphere  seemed  instinct 
with  the  spirit  of  worship,  would  gladly  accept  an  invi- 
tation to  service  in  the  army  of  the  Lord.  And  so  it  came 
to  pass  that  when  the  call  for  recruits  rang  out  upon  the 
summer  evening  air,  in  that  sylvan  temple,  we  joined  the 
eager  throng  that  rallied  under  the  standard  of  the  cross 
and  gave  ourselves  up  unreservedly  to  the  Captain  of  our 
Salvation  for  time  and  for  eternity. 

"Young  Wilson,  as  a  penitent,  had  been  kneeling  with 
a  companion,  about  his  own  age,  son  of  a  prominent 
Methodist  of  the  neighborhood,  and  as  they  rose,  which 
they  did  together,  they  embraced  while  their  countenances 
were  radiant  with  the  happiness  of  souls  just  bom  into 
the  kingdom.  It  was  a  striking  picture,  and  through  all 
the  years  which  have  fallen  between  that  starlit  scene  and 
the  present  moment,  I  have  treasured  the  recollection  of 
it  as  one  of  life's  most  precious  memories. 

65 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


"At  the  great  separation  of  1844,  the  Wilson  family, 
and  my  own  as  well,  remained  in  the  communion  of  the 
M.  E.  Church;  but  in  1866,  we  cast  in  our  lot  with  the 
M.  E.  Church,  South.  In  1867,  I  was  enrolled  as  a  mem- 
ber of  Mt.  Vernon  Place  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
South;  and  later  on,  to  my  great  delight,  the  future  bishop 
became  our  local  pastor,  his  pastorate  covering  the 
quadrennium  1873-1877. 

"During  this  period — in  1876 — I  was  called  to  the 
superintendency  of  the  Sunday  School,  on  the  voluntary 
retirement  of  the  late  Henry  F.  Zimmerman,  a  veteran 
superintendent,  and  one  of  the  best  and  sainthest  men  it 
was  ever  my  good  fortune  to  know. 

"As  I  recall  Brother  Wilson's  ministry,  its  great  over- 
shadowing characteristic  was  the  apostolic  purity  and 
simplicity  of  his  preaching.  The  burden  of  his  message 
was  that  Pauline  declaration — 'For  other  foundation  can 
no  man  lay  than  that  is  laid,  which  is  Jesus  Christ.' 
There  was  never  a  hint  of  worldy  sensationalism,  nor  any 
straining  after  effect  in  manner  or  method  with  him,  but 
always  and  under  all  circumstances,  a  clear,  forceful,  con- 
scientious presentation  of  'the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus.' 

"Talking,  not  long  since,  with  a  leading  layman  of  our 
sister  Methodism,  I  spoke  of  the  Bishop  as  the  most 
profound  thinker  and  masterful  logician  and  reasoner  of 
whom  I  had  any  knowledge,  concluding  with  the  remark: 
'I  consider  him  the  greatest  preacher  in  all  our  connec- 
tion.' His  instant  rejoiner  was:  'Yes,  or  in  any  other 
connection,  and  I  never  miss  an  opportunity  to  hear  him. ' 

"He  always  manifested  the  liveliest  interest  in  the  work 
of  the  Sunday  School,  and,  as  superintendent,  I  foimd  a 
constant  inspiration  in  his  counsel  and  support.  He 
thoroughly  believed  in  early  conversions,  and  I  can  never 
forget  the  joy  which  seemed  to  sweep  through  his  great 
soul  one  Sunday  afternoon,  as  the  Holy  Spirit  moved  upon 
the  hearts  of  a  number  of  the  younger  children.  It  was  a 
gathering  then  known  as  'The  Young  People's  Meeting,' 
that  preceded  among  us,  the  organization  of  the  '  Society  of 
Christian  Endeavor,'  which  later,  in  turn,  was  succeeded 


66 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


by  '  The  Epworth  League. '  The  room  was  thronged,  and 
the  interest  so  great  that  a  dozen  or  more  of  little  peni- 
tents knelt  for  prayer,  some  of  whom  were  converted,  and 
laid  then  and  there  the  foundation  for  lives  of  Christian 
usefulness. 

"One  thing  that  he  stressed  with  all  the  earnestness  of 
his  nature  was  the  necessity  for  zeal  and  diligence  in 
laboring  for  the  cause  of  missions,  and  he  made  it  clear 
that  in  his  opinion  a  church  or  Sunday  School  that  was 
lukewarm,  or  inactive  in  this  field  of  Christian  effort,  was 
sadly  lacking  in  love  and  loyalty  for  the  Master. 

"Under  the  stimulus  of  his  direction  the  school  made 
the  largest  annual  missionary  contribution  in  its  history, 
one  class  alone  raising  $500.  The  School  also  pledged 
itself  to  the  support  of  a  native  Chinese  student  who  be- 
came a  preacher  of  the  gospel  to  his  own  people,  taking 
the  name  'Vernon  Wilson'  in  honor  of  both  Church  and 
pastor. 

"During  brother  Wilson's  pastorate  Mount  Vernon 
Place  Church,  as  the  present  organization  of  Southern 
Methodism  in  Washington,  began  to  extend  its  borders  and 
enlarge  the  scope  of  its  activities — a  movement,  which,  in 
its  ultimate  result,  some  years  later,  brought  into  our 
family  circle  five  thriving  and  progressive  Southern 
Methodist  congregations. 

"As  a  further  evidence  of  this  growth  Mount  Vernon 
Place  Congregation  on  Monday,  October  8,  1917,  under 
the  direction  of  Bishop  Warren  A.  Candler,  laid  the- 
corner-stone  of  a  structure  which  in  its  magnificent  archi- 
tectural appointments  will  be  an  ornament  to  the  Nation's 
Capital  and  worthy  to  stand  as  a  Representative  Church 
of  the  great  denomination  in  whose  service  Bishop  Wilson 
labored  so  faithfully  throughout  his  long  and  useful  life. 

"I  am  conscious,  my  dear  Doctor  Harris,  that  this  is 
but  a  feeble  and  imperfect  response  to  your  request,  but 
40  years  have  passed  since  the  pastorate  ended,  of  which 
I  have  written,  and  the  limitations  of  memory  forbid 
details  which  I  would  gladly  supply  were  it  possible. " 


67 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


In  1877,  Dr.  Wilson  was  appointed  pastor  of 
Calvary  Church,  Baltimore,  and  in  1878  was  re- 
turned to  that  pastorate,  but  at  the  General  Con- 
ference in  May  of  that  year  he  was  elected  Secretary 
of  the  Board  of  Missions  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  South. 


68 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Called  to  be  Secretary  of  the  Board 

OF  Missions. 

The  General  Conference  that  met  in  Atlanta  in 
1878  was  a  memorable  one  in  the  life  of  A.  W.  Wilson, 
for  it  elected  him  to  an  office  which  became  the  outlet 
for  his  special  gifts  and  energies  and  which  was  the 
beginning  of  his  phenomenal  career  in  the  Church. 
The  Baltimore  Conference  delegation  to  this  body 
was  composed  of  Samuel  Regester,  A.  W.  Wilson,  J. 
S.  Martin,  Samuel  Rodgers,  David  Thomas,  R.  R. 
S.  Hough,  P.  H.  Whisner,  and  S.  S.  Roszell,  as 
clerical  delegates;  and  Moses  Walton,  Patrick  Hamill, 
J.  H.  H.  Figgatt,  George  Law,  T.  J.  Magruder,  E.  B. 
Prettyman,  James  W.  Newton,  J.  Armistead  Carter, 
as  lay  delegates. 

Though  occupying  a  place  among  the  leaders  of 
his  own  Conference  no  circumstances  had  ever  oc- 
curred in  the  life  of  t)r.  Wilson  to  bring  him  promi- 
nently before  the  connection.  It  is  true  that  he  had , 
been  a  member  of  the  General  Conferences  of  1870 
and  1874.  In  the  latter  with  Samuel  Regester  he 
had  represented  the  Baltimore  Conference  in  rela- 
tion to  the  grounds  of  appeal  of  the  L.  D.  Huston 
case,  and  was  chairman  of  the  committee  on  fraternal 
relations  from  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  when 
that  body  sent  its  first  representatives  with  greetings 
to  our  Church,  but  these  occasions  gave  the  General 
Conference  but  little  opportunity  to  judge  of  his 
actual  and  potential  ability. 

69 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Previous  to  this  time,  as  has  been  intimated,  his 
superior  intellect  had  brought  him  to  the  front  rank 
among  the  brethren  of  his  own  Conference,  and  had 
attracted  the  attention  of  others.  Bishop  Hoss  in 
his  characteristic  manner  speaks  of  his  first  meeting 
with  him  and  the  impressions  he  received : 

"I  have  known  the  Bishop  since  1868,  having  met  him 
for  the  first  time  at  the  Baltimore  Conference  of  that  year. 
He  stood  among  an  array  of  noble  men,  the  equal  in  every 
respect  of  the  best  of  them.  Samuel  S.  Roszell,  Samuel 
Regester,  Thomas  E.  Bond,  E.  F.  Busey,  and  many  others 
whom  I  should  like  to  mention,  were  there  in  their  prime. 
It  was  beautiful  to  see  the  affectionate  admiration  with 
which  they  regarded  *Alph  Wilson,'  as  they  familiarly 
called  him.  Twice  or  thrice  during  the  session  he  appeared 
on  the  floor.  I  cannot  forget  the  ease,  the  dignity,  the 
definiteness,  and  the  force  with  which  he  spoke.  It 
seemed  to  me  that  I  had  not  before  heard  any  man  who 
was  quite  his  equal  in  public  utterance.  This  first  im- 
pression that  I  got  of  him  grew  into  a  fixed  conviction  as  the 
years  went  by,  I  was  not  long  in  discovering,  moreover, 
that  many  other  persons  shared  my  judgment  concerning 
him.  Talking  to  me  once  about  the  late  Thomas  Guard 
he  said  of  him  without  reserve :  '  He  is  the  most  affluent 
man  in  thought  and  speech  that  I  ever  heard.'  Some  time 
later  I  mentioned  this  utterance  to  Dr.  Samuel  Roszell. 
In  a  moment  that  kingly  man  rose  up  and  said :  '  It  is  not 
true.  Alph.  Wilson  is  himself  a  more  affluent  man  than 
Thomas  Guard  ever  dreamed  of  being. ' " 

The  afternoon  session  of  May  23  of  the  General 
Conference  of  1878,  was  extended  for  the  body  to 
elect  a  Missionary  Secretary  and  the  members  of  the 
Board  of  Missions. 

The  territory  generally  served  by  the  Church  had 
been  swept  and  devastated  by  war  and  almost  de- 
stroyed by  the  outrages  of  the  period  of  recon- 

70 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


struction.  The  General  Conference  knew  that  it 
would  take  a  master  spirit  to  awaken  the  Church  to  a 
new  sense  of  life  and  compel  it  to  look  out  over  its 
own  ashes  and  sorrows  to  the  regions  beyond.  The 
voice  that  would  arouse  the  people  from  a  state  of 
despondency  because  of  their  ruined  churches  and 
their  own  poverty  to  a  sense  of  obHgation  to  build 
first  the  altar  of  God  for  a  world-wide  movement  had 
to  speak  with  the  authority  and  power  of  a  Nehemiah 
or  Haggai.  The  Conference  moved  prayerfully  and 
cautiously  in  the  selection  of  the  man  for  this  service. 

On  the  first  ballot  for  Secretary  there  were  215 
votes  cast  but  there  was  no  election.  D.  C.  Kelley 
and  A.  W.  Wilson,  the  leaders  for  the  office  of  large 
responsibihty,  received  52  and  38  votes  respectively, 
but  neither  was  near  the  goal.  On  the  second  ballot, 
207  votes  were  cast,  of  which  A.  W.  Wilson  received 
108  and  D.  C.  Kelley  69,  resulting  in  the  election  of 
A.  W.  Wilson. 

It  may  be  of  interest  to  our  readers  to  see  Article 
7  of  the  Constitution  of  the  Board  of  Missions,  as  it 
was  in  those  days,  defining  the  duties  of  the  Secretary 
and  also  to  know  the  names  of  those  who  composed 
the  members  of  the  Board  which  co-operated  with 
A.  W.  Wilson  in  laying  the  foundations  of  a  work 
which  has  grown  to  proportions  unthought  of  by 
many  of  those  pious  and  wise  men. 

This  is  the  section  from  the  Constitution  as  it  was 
amended  by  that  General  Conference: 

"Article  7.  The  Secretary  shall  be  a  minister  of  the 
gospel,  and  may  be  a  member  of  any  Annual  Conference, 
but  shall  reside  where  the  Board  is  located.  He  shall  be 
ex  officio  Treasurer  of  the  Board,  and  shall,  before  entering 

71 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


upon  his  duties  as  Secretary  and  Treasurer,  give  good  and 
sufficient  security  for  all  moneys  that  may  come  into  his 
hands.  He  shall  be  allowed  clerical  assistance  not  to  ex- 
ceed five  hundred  dollars  per  annum. 

"It  shall  be  his  duty  to  keep  a  permanent  record  of  the 
proceedings  of  the  Board,  and  to  publish  an  abstract  of 
them  in  the  Church  papers;  to  conduct  its  correspondence 
to  attend  to  all  its  legal  business;  to  prepare  its  annual 
report;  and  to  publish  monthly  (either  in  a  missionary 
paper  or  in  the  Church  papers,  as  the  Board  shall  direct) 
statements  of  the  condition,  needs,  and  prospects  of  the 
various  missions. 

"He  shall  receive  and  receipt  for  all  moneys,  counter- 
sign all  drafts,  hold  the  funds  of  the  Board  in  safe  deposit 
which  deposit  shall  be  made  by  him  as  Secretary  and  Treas- 
urer, subject  to  the  draft  of  the  President  of  the  Board, 
countersigned  by  the  Secretary  and  Treasurer;  but  in  no 
case  shall  such  funds  be  invested  in  his  or  any  other  busi- 
ness. He  shall  furnish  an  annual  report  for  pubhcation. 
His  salary  shall  be  fixed  by  the  Board,  and  all  his  necessary 
traveling  expenses  shall  be  allowed. " 

This  is  the  Board  as  it  was  constituted  at  that 
time : 

T.  O.  Summers,  President;  N.  H.  Lee,  Vice- 
president;  James  W.  Manier,  Treasurer.  Managers: 
J.  S.  Martin,  Baltimore  Conference;  W.  G.  E.  Cun- 
nyngham,  Holston  Conference;  L.  S.  Burkhead, 
North  CaroUna  Conference;  H.  A.  C.  Walker,  South 
CaroHna  Conference;  W.  H.  Potter,  North  Georgia 
Conference;  R.  A.  Young,  Tennessee  Conference;  P. 
A.  Peterson,  Virginia  Conference;  D.  C.  Kelley, 
Tennessee  Conference;  A.  H.  Redford,  Louisville 
Conference;  L  G.  John,  Texas  Conference;  A.  R. 
Winfield,  Little  Rock  Conference;  J.  W.  Lewis,  St. 
Louis  Conference;  W.  F.  Johnson  (Lexington),  Mis- 
souri Conference;  J.  C.  Simmons,  Pacific  Conference- 

72 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


O.  P.  Fitzgerald,  Pacific  Conference;  J.  D.  Hamilton, 
Tennessee  Conference;  C.  B.  Gallaway,  Mississippi 
Conference. 

The  office  of  Secretary,  as  was  stated  in  the  fore- 
going, was  combined  in  those  days  with  that  of  the 
Treasurer  of  the  Board  of  Missions,  entailing  a 
multiplicity  of  duties  and  details.  One  of  the  first 
moves  of  the  new  incumbent  was  to  separate  the 
offices  that  his  energies  might  be  concentrated  upon  a 
few  things  rather  than  dissipated  upon  many.  With 
his  breadth  of  vision  and  foresight  he  selected  the 
great  things  and  placed  such  tremendous  emphasis 
upon  them  as  to  move  the  Church  to  its  profoundest 
depths. 

He  followed  no  precedents  but  blocked  out  plans 
and  methods  that  were  wholly  his  own.  He  traveled 
throughout  the  connection  and  preached  and  made 
missionary  addresses  with  tremendous  effect.  The 
stricken  Church  throughout  the  South  felt  the  im- 
pelling obligation  of  its  divine  commission  to  preach 
the  gospel  to  every  nation.  Its  intelligence  was 
satisfied  and  its  faith  quickened  to  a  passion  of 
service. 

The  missionary  anniversaries  became  the  most 
notable  events  of  the  Conference  and  the  very  atmos- 
phere became  charged  with  the  spirit  of  missions. 
The  poor  rejoiced  to  lay  their  offerings  upon  the 
altar.  Men  of  wealth  with  religious  convictions 
were  greatly  stirred  by  the  truth  being  put  before  them 
in  a  fashion  entirely  unknown  to  them  before.  This 
is  a  specimen  of  the  pungent  utterances  of  the  new 
Secretary,  revealing  the  naked  and  unpalatable 
truth  which  proved  to  be  "sharper  than  any  two- 

73 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


edged  sword  piercing  even  to  the  dividing  asunder  of 
soul  and  spirit : " 

"The  man  of  fifty  thousand  dollars  who  brings  five, 
twenty,  or  a  hundred  dollars  to  the  altar  of  God  and  says : 
*  This  is  all  I  have  to  spare, '  lies  to  God,  as  Ananias  never 
did.  Tens  of  thousands  are  living  in  luxury,  spending 
money  for  vanity  and  pride,  gluttony  and  sensuality,  and 
submitting  a  mere  bagatelle  to  the  use  of  the  Holy  Ghost. " 

Hardships  and  sacrifices  characterized  the  jour- 
neys of  this  missionary  apostle,  particularly  in  the 
West  where  the  means  of  transportation  were  still  of  a 
primitive  nature.  By  stage  coach  and  carriage  he 
traveled  rough  roads,  crossed  deserts,  forded  swollen 
rivers,  climbed  mountains  and  suffered  all  sorts  of 
bodily  discomforts  for  the  Gospel's  sake.  On  one 
occasion  he  carried  $1,200  in  gold  in  his  belt  by  stage 
and  by  boat  from  the  state  of  Washington  to  San 
Francisco,  because  at  that  time  that  was  the  method 
of  conveying  money  from  one  place  to  another.  He 
was  never  held  up  nor  subjected  to  accident  in  that 
comparatively  new  part  of  our  country. 

He  often  had  rough  accommodations,  and  dis- 
comforts to  endure ;  but  was  at  that  period  stronger 
than  he  had  been,  and  only  made  a  jest  of  them. 
Once  he  was  in  Texas,  with  Dr.  R.  A.  Young,  and 
the  only  accomm.odation  for  toilet  was  at  the  pump 
in  the  yard.  Dr.  Young  went  down  the  village 
street  to  buy  towels,  and  each  pumped  for  the 
ablutions  of  the  other. 

He  always  said  there  was  no  difficulty  in  getting 
money  for  missions  from  the  Church.  All  that  was 
necessary  was  to  tell  the  people,  tell  them  about  con- 
ditions, tell  them  how  much  was  needed,  and  just 

74 


BISHOP  WILSON'S  HOME 
The  gift  of  Governor  and  Mrs.  E.  E.  Jackson  in  1902 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


how  it  was  to  be  used;  they  always  would  respond. 
He  would  never  ask  people  for  money  individually; 
he  made  his  statements  pubUcly,  and  left  them  to 
apply  to  their  own  hearts  the  fact  and  the  possibility. 
To  illustrate  the  state  of  ignorance  of  the  Church  at 
large,  at  the  beginning  of  his  term,  he  told  how  he 
went  to  one  Annual  Conference.  He  was  not  met; 
he  went  to  the  church,  and  when  the  host  saw  him — 
recognizing  him  to  be  a  preacher,  he  said,  "Are  you  a 
member  of  this  Conference?"  "No,"  was  the  an- 
swer. "What  is  your  name?"  This  was  answered 
and  he  confessed  himself  a  member  of  the  Baltimore 
Conference.  In  reply  to  various  questions  he 
finally  stated  that  he  was  Secretary  of  the  General 
Board  of  Missions  and  had  come  to  present  his  work; 
and  was  introduced  to  the  Conference,  in  the  tem- 
porary absence  of  the  presiding  Bishop,  as  "the  Rev. 
A.  W.  Wilson,  missionary  secretary  of  the  Baltimore 
Conference,  seeking  aid  for  missions." 

His  deliverances  from  the  pulpit  and  rostrum  were 
reinforced  by  the  "Advocate  of  Missions"  of  which 
he  was  the  editor.  Its  strong  editorials  and  news 
from  every  mission  field  in  the  world  made  it  a  force , 
to  be  reckoned  with  by  the  indifferent  and  the  opposer 
of  missions.  That  the  cause  was  placed  upon  the 
heart  and  conscience  of  the  Church  as  never  before, 
and  that  the  Church  was  awakened  to  an  over- 
whelming sense  of  its  duty  and  responsibiUty  was  the 
natural  consequence  of  a  quadrennium  of  such  re- 
markable m-ental  and  spiritual  activity. 

In  response  to  the  Board  of  Missions  for  all  of  the 
available  information  it  could  furnish  for  this 
chapter,  in  the  absence  of  Dr.  W.  W.  Pinson,  the 

75 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


General  Secretary,  because  of  illness,  whose  estima- 
tion of  Bishop  Wilson's  work  is  very  high,  Mr.  J.  D. 
Hamilton,  the  Treasurer,  sent  two  extracts  from  the 
reports  submitted  by  Dr.  A.  W.  Wilson  for  1879  and 
1880  which  throw  light  upon  the  Scriptural  basis 
upon  which  he  built  his  work. 

Mr.  Hamilton  wrote : 

"On  beginning  his  administration  he  made  some  read- 
justments in  the  ofRce  force  in  the  interest  of  better  book- 
keeping and  larger  attendance  to  its  correspondence.  He 
then  secured  the  services,  free  of  charge,  of  an  honorable 
and  prominent  merchant,  Mr.  J.  W.  Manier,  as  Treasurer 
of  the  Board.  These  arrangements  left  him  free  to  visit 
the  Church  at  large  in  the  interest  of  the  great  cause  of 
missions,  and  there  are  traditions  throughout  the  Church 
that  never  was  the  cause  so  ably  and  forcibly  presented  as 
it  was  by  him  during  these  four  years.  Many  are  now 
living  who  can  testify  to  the  soul  stirring  speeches  made  by 
him,  and  under  this  ministry  there  was  a  revival  of  the 
Church's  interest  in  missions  which  amounted  to  a  new 
birth.  He  so  wrought  upon  the  conscience  of  the  people 
that  there  was  an  immediate  increase  in  the  interest  of 
missions  which  began  to  show  itself  in  the  increased  con- 
tributions for  the  cause.  In  five  years  from  the  beginning 
of  his  administration  the  contributions  for  foreign  missions 
increased  from  $65,139  to  $160,272  per  annum.  There 
was  of  course  an  equal  enlargement  of  missionary  work  in 
the  foreign  fields.  I  suppose  no  well  informed  Methodist 
doubts  that  the  present  general  interest  in  the  cause  of 
missions  throughout  our  Church  had  its  rise  in  the  almost 
apostolic  labors  of  this  Pauline  man  during  the  four  years 
of  his  incumbency  of  the  office  of  Missionary  Secretary. " 

From  the  Annual  Report  1879. 

"The  whole  question  of  missions  is  so  intimately  re- 
lated to  the  religious  life  of  the  Church  that  it  is  at  the 
risk  of  its  own  extinction  that  any  Church  lapses  into  in- 

76 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


difference  or  hardens  into  opposition  to  the  work.  Many- 
men  and  women  in  these  times  have  found,  according  to 
their  expHcit  avowal,  a  great  accession  of  spiritual  power, 
an  increase  of  faith,  a  widening  of  Christian  sympathy  and 
joy  in  Christian  fellowship,  and  deeper,  truer  love  to  their 
Lord,  and  keener  delight  in  communion  with  Him,  con- 
sequent upon  their  hearty,  active,  self-sacrificing  in- 
terest in  the  mission  work.  It  is  not  strange  that  it  should 
be  so.  Such  interest  is  the  expression  of  true,  earnest 
sympathy  with  the  Lord  in  His  love  and  His  purpose,  of 
simple,  sincere  faith  in  His  word  and  His  power,  and  of 
obedience  to  His  highest,  most  comprehensive  command. 
His  love  is  to  all  men.  He  died  for  all ;  He  will  draw  all  men 
to  Him;  He  will  have  all  to  be  saved.  His  purpose  is  to 
overcome  all  opposition  and  make  Himself  known  in  all 
the  earth.  He  is  expecting  until  His  enemies  be  made  His 
footstool.  Every  knee  shall  bow,  and  every  tongue  con- 
fess Him  Lord.  He  has  bidden  the  Church  carry  out  His 
purpose  with  simple  faith  in  His  presence  and  power.  *  Lo, 
I  am  with  you  always,  even  unto  the  end  of  the  world. ' 
The  great  command,  the  commission  to  the  Church,  is  im- 
perative, and  appeals  still  to  the  conscience,  faith,  and  love, 
of  every  believer.  *Go  ye  into  all  the  world.'  Neglect 
of  that  is  frustration  of  the  Lord's  highest  purpose. 
Obedience  to  it  is  the  guarantee  of  individual  life  and  ec- 
clesiastical prosperity.  The  Church  will  thrive  upon  its 
sacrifices  to  fulfill  that  command.  Faithful  to  that,  it 
cannot  die,  though  it  want  many  things. 

"Our  responsibility  is  great.  It  is  high  time  for  us  to 
put  off  the  limitations  by  which  we  have  restricted  our 
operations,  and  strive  to  give  the  fullest  expression  to  the 
word  and  will  of  our  Lord.  We  have  no  measure  of  obli- 
gation but  His  will.  We  are  bound  to  break  away  from 
every  prejudice  or  constraint  that  would  hold  us  to  a  lower 
standard.  Duty  is  all  in  one  saying, '  Thus  saith  the  Lord. ' 
Now  we  make  our  appeal  to  you  in  view  of  the  urgent  and 
increasing  demands  of  our  work.  We  have  been  afraid  to 
respond  to  the  calls  of  our  missions,  lest  we  should  go  in 
advance  of  the  Church's  wilHngness,  and  have  felt  con- 


77 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


strained  to  deny  many  things  that  seemed  to  be  necessary 
in  the  growth  of  these  fields.  Yet  our  contributions  show 
a  poor  average  for  our  membership.  Will  not  our  preach- 
ers with  deeper  solicitude  urge  this  matter  upon  the  con- 
science of  our  people,  and  appeal  to  them  by  the  love  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  to  sustain  His  cause?  Go  bej'ond  our 
estimates,  and  give  what  is  really  needed.  Not  one  dollar 
is  wasted.  A  strict  and  minute  account  of  all  expenditures 
is  open  to  the  entire  Church,  and  we  shall  rejoice  to  let  you 
see  with  what  care  your  contributions  are  applied  to  best 
uses.  Let  our  rich  men  of  their  abundance  give  liberally, 
and  the  poor  give  out  of  their  deep  poverty,  that  the 
riches  of  their  liberality  may  aboiuid,  and  that  they  may 
have  a  full  share  in  the  great  reward. 

"We  beseech  you,  brethren,  by  the  grace  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  who,  though  He  was  rich,  for  your  sakes 
became  poor,  that  ye  through  His  poverty  might  be  rich. 

"A.  W.  Wilson." 

From  the  Annual  Report  1880. 

"We  bring  to  the  Church  the  report  of  another  year's 
work  in  its  mission-fields,  together  with  the  statement  of 
supplies  furnished  for  the  prosecution  of  that  work,  and 
plans  projected  and  provision  made  for  the  coming  year. 
The  figures  furnished  by  the  Treasurer  show  an  increase  in 
collections  in  almost  every  Conference,  and  thus  indicate  a 
growing  appreciation  of  the  importance  of  this  vital  enter- 
prise. This  result  cannot  be  attributed  to  spasmodic 
effort  and  short-lived  enthusiasm.  Many  signs  concur  to 
evince  that  the  mind  of  the  Church  is  becoming  clearer, 
and  the  conscience  is  being  awakened  upon  this  question. 
There  is  a  more  thorough  and  earnest  discussion  of  the 
character  and  claims  of  missions  in  all  our  Church  papers 
than  at  any  previous  period,  and  a  more  urgent  call  for 
efficient  plans  and  vigorous  work.  There  have  been  many 
ready  and  generous  responses  to  special  appeals  for  help 
made  during  the  year.  There  is  a  more  widespread  sense 
of  responsibility  among  our  people,  and  an  expression  of 
purpose  to  rise  among  the  measured  demands  to  the  height 

78 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


of  God's  requirement  in  this  matter.  In  many  instances 
whole  communities  of  believers  have  declared  their  in- 
tention to  pass  beyond  assigned  limits,  and  by  free-will 
offerings  magnify  the  grace  of  God.  There  is  a  spirit  of 
inquiry  abroad  which  promises  enlargement  and  freedom 
of  movement.  These  and  many  other  tokens  foretell  the 
disfranchisement  of  the  Church  from  the  prejudice,  nar- 
rowness, and  confinement  of  tentative,  feeble,  half- 
hearted endeavor,  and  its  entrance  upon  an  era  of  enter- 
prise worthy  of  its  divine  relations,  endowments,  and  des- 
tiny. 

"A  Church  full  of  faith  and  Holy  Ghost  is  always 
aggressive.  The  word  of  the  Lord  sounds  out  from  it 
into  all  places.  A  lifeless,  worldly  Church  moves  nothing, 
impresses  nobody.  Ntmibers  and  wealth  count  for  little. 
If  the  propagation  of  its  style  of  piety  could  be  effected  by 
means  of  these,  what  would  be  the  gain?  As  was  well 
said  some  months  back,  'When  the  current  religious  life 
is  of  so  low  a  grade,  can  we  expect  God  to  permit  its  wide 
and  swift  diffusion?  We  see  Him  select  the  few — the 
advance-guard  of  disciples — to  bear  the  banner  of  the 
cross  into  the  enemy's  country.  He  permits  difficulties 
and  dangers  to  face  them,  so  that  all  but  devoted,  heroic 
souls,  may  turn  back.  And  so  He  is  today  actually 
diffusing  in  missionary  fields  a  type  of  piety  far  in  advance 
of  that  foimd  at  home,  and,  in  proportion  to  the  number 
of  laborers  and  the  means  employed,  the  results  are 
threefold  as  great  as  at  home. '  In  proportion  as  we  shall 
abandon  'the  course  of  this  world,'  and  yield  to  higher 
motives  and  impulses,  and  cultivate  truer  and  sounder 
Christian  principles  and  affections,  the  missionary  spirit 
will  grow,  and  the  successes  of  the  work  multiply.  When 
we  shall  have  something  to  give  worth  the  taking,  the 
world  will  be  ready  to  receive  it.  At  the  same  time,  by 
this  law  of  reaction,  as  old  Andrew  Fuller  found  in  his 
Church,  there  is  no  surer  way  of  kindling  the  dying 
embers  into  a  flame  than  by  fanning  them  with  this  spirit 
of  missions.  Make  this  the  theme  of  thought  and  study, 
of  prayer  and  preaching,  and  bring  it  to  the  social  and 
domestic  circles  of  the  Church,  and  you  shall  have  the 


79 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


enthusiasm  of  the  Son  of  God  kindled  upon  the  heart,  and 
higher  fonns  and  a  wider  extent  of  devotion  to  Christ 
exhibited  than  has  yet  been  known. 

"We  make,  then,  our  urgent  appeal  to  the  entire 
Church.  We  omit  none.  To  the  rich  and  the  poor,  to 
the  earnest  and  self-sacrificing,  and  the  careless  and  self- 
indulgent,  to  the  preacher  and  the  people,  we  bring  the 
Master's  command,  and  charge  you  by  your  own  imperiled 
life,  and  by  your  deepest  Christian  joy,  by  your  obliga- 
tion and  indebtedness, and  by  your  hopes  for  the  coming 
world,  see  to  it  that,  as  far  as  in  you  lies,  the  word  of  God 
and  the  promise  of  the  gospel  be  given  to  every  creature 
under  heaven.  Let  not  one  of  Christ's  redeemed  be  able 
to  say,  in  your  presence,  'None  cared  for  mv  soul.' 

"A.  W.  Wilson,' Secretary." 

Dr.  J.  A.  G.  Shipley,  a  missionary  to  China  who 
went  out  from  the  Baltimore  Conference,  attributes 
our  success  in  that  land  largely  to  the  administration 
of  Dr.  Wilson  as  Missionary  Secretary  and  his 
subsequent  supervision  of  that  mission  field  and  the 
practical  help  and  inspiration  he  brought  to  it  as 
Bishop.  Dr.  Shipley  has  expanded  these  ideas  in 
this  language : 

"1.  His  large  part  in  shaping  and  directing  the  affairs 
of  the  Mission  while  Missionary  Secretary. 

"2.  His  more  direct  contact  with  the  work  as  Bishop 
in  charge  of  the  field.  His  numerous  visits  to  China — 
more  in  number  than  those  of  any  other  Bishop  of  our 
Church — his  stay  on  the  field  of  longer  duration — he 
always  put  the  needs  of  the  field  to  which  he  was  assigned, 
and  the  demands  there  placed  upon  him  ahead  of  calls  in 
the  home-land,  and  stayed  until  his  work  was  done  or  in 
shape,  even  though  it  was  at  times  at  the  risk  of  his  health 
and  life — his  willingness  to  visit  every  part  of  the  work, 
whether  occupied  by  missionaries  or  under  the  direction  of 
the  Chinese,  and  his  patient  endurance  of  the  hard  con- 
ditions of  travel  and  life  necessitated  by  such  visits.     His 

80 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


knowledge  of  the  work  was  thorough  and  full  as  to  all  its 
branches,  and  his  plans  for  it  far-reaching  and  compre- 
hensive— especially  was  this  true  of  the  educational  branch 
which  he  recognized  at  its  full  value  of  formative  and 
directive  influence  not  only  in  individual,  but  in  national 
life. 

"His  power  and  reputation  as  a  preacher  was  high 
among  the  Chinese  and  the  foreign  populations  of  China 
who  heard  him,  as  it  was  at  home;  and  when  he  addressed 
EngHsh-understanding  congregations  in  any  of  the  ports 
he  invariably  drew  a  full  house,  and  there  as  here  his 
sermons  revealed  the  fullness  of  his  understanding  of 
Christ's  Gospel.  The  pastor  of  the  Union  Church  in 
Shanghai — a  Britisher — remarked  to  him  that  Bishop 
Wilson  was  the  greatest  preacher  he  had  ever  heard,  and 
he  had  heard  many. " 

Dr.  J.  C.  C.  Newton,  who  has  spent  his  life  in  the 
Orient  and  is  now  president  of  the  Kwansei  Gakuin 
of  Kobe,  Japan,  the  most  largely  attended  Southern 
Methodist  institution  of  learning  in  the  world,  has 
kindly  contributed  the  following  upon  the  work  and 
influence  of  Bishop  Wilson  upon  the  mission  fields 
of  the  Church : 

"The  first  time  I  ever  saw  Bishop  Wilson  was  in  1878 
at  the  session  of  the  Kentucky  Conference  in  Shelbyville. 

"The  second  or  third  night  of  the  Conference,  he  and  . 
Dr.  O.  P.  Fitzgerald  came  into  the  crowded  church  a 
Httle  late  and  walked  into  the  chancel.  Dr.  Fitzgerald 
walking  in  front.  Having  never  seen  Dr.  Wilson  I  did 
not  know  who  it  was,  but  was  struck  with  his  appearance 
because  he  looked  exactly  Hke  a  Jew.  But  I  certainly 
found  out  who  he  was  before  the  Conference  adjourned. 
At  the  anniversary  of  the  Conference  Board  of  Missions, 
he  addressed  the  large  assembly.  We  soon  discovered 
that  a  giant  was  treading  amongst  us.  He  put  the  cause 
of  foreign  missions  upon  higher  ground,  made  the  appeal 
to  our  conscience  and  pressed  the  universal  claims  of 

81 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Christ  in  behalf  of  all  nations — in  fact  it  was  plain  that 
he  made  not  a  few  of  us  ashamed  of  our  narrow  and  un- 
worthy views.  I  chanced  to  be  sitting  where  I  coiild  see 
some  of  the  elegantl}^  dressed  women  of  the  congregation, 
and  it  was  only  too  evident  that  Dr.  Wilson  had  touched 
their  consciences  and  made  them  feel  embarrassed  over  the 
pittance  they  had  been  giving  for  the  conversion  of  the 
heathen — a  pittance  given  out  of  their  own  plenteous  and 
indulgent  living.  Thus  it  became  apparent  that  the  new 
Secretary  of  our  Foreign  Mission  Board  was  going  to  lift 
the  whole  missionar}^  movement  of  the  Church  in  the 
world  to  higher  motives  and  to  a  wider  vision  of  Christ's 
redemptive  work  for  the  nations. 

"During  that  same  Conference  session,  Dr.  Wilson 
preached  twice,  and  what  preaching!  Some  of  us  had 
never  heard  it  in  this  wise  before.  The  first  sermon  was 
based  upon  the  parable  of  the  importunate  neighbor — the 
essential  conditions  of  prayer.  I  had  preached  upon  the 
same  subject  using  the  same  text  on  the  Sunday  night 
previous.  Well,  I  did  not  throw  my  own  sermon  away, 
but  there  was  a  depth  and  a  breadth  of  thought  that  served 
me  in  good  stead  later. 

"Bishop  Pierce,  easily  the  first  pulpit  orator  of  the 
Church,  was  the  president  of  that  Conference,  but  on  ac- 
count of  some  throat  trouble  (from  which  he  afterwards 
died)  was  not  able  to  preach  at  11  o'clock  on  Sunday. 
Dr.  Wilson  took  his  place.  His  subject  was  '  Christ  in  you 
the  hope  of  glory. '  That  sermon  was  one  of  the  greatest, 
if  not  the  very  greatest,  that  I  have  heard.  The  effect 
upon  the  preachers  was  strangely,  almost  mysteriously 
impressive.  For  a  good  while  the  preacher  moved  quietly 
along  getting  deeper  and  deeper  into  the  Person  and  Nature 
of  Jesus  Christ,  His  message  and  His  work  in  believers, 
gripping  tighter  and  tighter  the  intellect  of  his  hearers,  and 
so  when  later  on  he  became  more  impassioned  himself  as 
he  in  his  own  peculiar  way  touched  our  feeling  and  stirred 
our  hopes,  there  ensued  a  strange  psychological  condition. 
We  were  unable  to  respond  with  the  usual  spontaneous 
emotional  expressions  of  joy  and  glory.     Tears  were  re- 


82 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


pressed,  the  muscles  of  many  faces  were  tightly  drawn, 
hearts  were  almost  bursting  with  joy,  and  our  minds 
overwhelmed  with  the  transcendent  vision  of  the  glory  of 
Christ  for  us  and  to  be  realized  in  us. 

"That  sennon  was  the  Christ  of  St.  Paul  as  expounded 
by  Alpheus  W.  Wilson  in  his  unique  and  wonderful  way. 

"On  the  mission  field,  first  as  Missionary  Secretary  and 
then  as  Bishop  in  charge,  he  made  a  distinct  and  perman- 
ent contribution.  Not  caring  so  much  for  details,  he 
brought  large  conceptions  and  was  interested  in  com- 
prehensive plans  and  measures.  He  lifted  the  China 
mission  field  up  to  a  higher  plane.  Perhaps  it  is  too  much 
to  say  that  he  recreated  it. 

"But  concerning  the  Southern  Methodist  mission  in 
Japan,  it  is  true  that  he  together  with  the  Lambuths, 
father  and  son,  was  one  of  the  founders. 

"Doctor,  now  Bishop,  Walter  R.  Lambuth  founded 
what  has  become  the  greatest  mission  college  and  seminary 
the  Southern  Methodist  Church  has  ever  planted  in  any 
foreign  field,  the  Kwansei  Gakuin  at  Kobe.  This  was  done 
with  the  advice  and  approval  of  Bishop  Wilson. 

"The  portraits  of  these  two  great  leaders  of  missions 
hang  side  by  side  on  the  walls  of  the  President's  office  of 
the  Kwansei  Galcuin. 

' '  He  was  president  and  presided  at  the  organization  of 
the  Japan  Mission  in  August,  1886 ;  and  in  later  years  doing 
what  no  other  Bishop  of  our  Church  ever  did,  he  visited 
Japan  and  China  six  times. 

"As  a  sidelight  into  the  Bishop's  heart,  I  was  once 
rather  surprised  to  see  how  keenly  sensitive  he  was  re- 
specting his  relation  to  those  far  away  fields  and  his 
services  for  them. 

"On  his  episcopal  visits  to  us  out  there,  his  preaching 
was  always  great,  deep,  uplifting  and  permanently  bene- 
ficial. It  is  regrettable  that  some  of  those  inimitable 
sermons  preached  out  there  were  not  taken  down  in 
shorthand  and  thus  preserved  to  the  Church.  It  is  said 
that  once  he  preached  at  the  Union  Church  in  Shanghai. 
A  consular  officer  of  Shanghai  who  had  been  present  went 


83 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


away  amazed  and  stunned  at  the  wonderful  preaching. 
The  Bishop  being  invited  to  preach  the  second  time  in 
that  church,  the  same  officer  determined  to  go  out  and 
hear  him  again,  but  offered  to  bet  that  the  second  sermon 
could  not  reach  to  the  same  high  level  of  the  first.  To  his 
amazement  and  delight  the  second  effort  reached  a  still 
higher  level  of  thought  and  power  than  the  first.  The  man 
left  the  church  unable  to  make  comment.  It  seemed  im- 
possible to  mortal  man. 

"Thus  has  passed  in  and  out  amongst  us  both  at  home 
and  in  the  foreign  fields  a  man  of  extraordinary  thought,  a 
powerful  preacher  and  a  man  of  uncommon  strength  of 
personality.  That  he  had  no  limitations  and  handicaps 
could  not  of  course  be  affirmed.  We  shall  never  see  such 
a  man  again.  A  giant  and  a  Prince  in  Israel  has  passed 
away,  but  his  influence  and  work  will  abide.  Personally  I 
have  been  more  richly  blessed  by  his  preaching  than  by 
any  other  of  the  great  preachers  it  has  been  my  privilege  to 
have  heard. " 

The  following  estimates  are  given  of  his  adminis- 
tration as  Missionary  Secretary  and  his  activities  in 
mission  fields  as  Bishop  by  four  of  his  colleagues, 
Bishops  Hoss,  Hendrix,  Denny  and  Lambuth,  whose 
close  relation  to  the  heart  throb  of  the  Church  both 
at  home  and  abroad,  has  peculiarly  fitted  them  for 
forming  judicious  judgments.  Bishop  Lambuth,  who 
was  intimately  associated  with  him  in  the  foreign 
field,  has  perhaps  a  larger  knowledge  of  liis  con- 
structive administrative  work  in  the  Orient  than  any 
other  living  man. 

Bishop  Hoss: 

"Though  I  was  not  a  member  of  the  General  Con- 
ference of  1878,  I  was  present  as  a  visitor,  and  was  a 
witness  to  the  growing  power  and  influence  which  Dr. 
Wilson  exercised  over  that  body.  If  any  new  Bishop  had 
been  chosen  at  that  time  he  would  probably  have  been  the 

84 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


man.  As  it  was,  when  a  vacancy  was  made  in  the  Mis- 
sionary Secretaryship  by  the  transfer  of  the  mighty  John 
B .  McFerrin  to  the  Book  Agency,  no  one  was  much  thought 
of  for  the  succession  except  Dr.  Wilson. 

"To  say  that  he  was  elected  without  the  slightest 
effort  on  his  part,  is  to  speak  the  truth  moderately  and 
soberly.  For  all  sorts  of  wire-pulling  and  demagogism  in 
the  Church,  he  had  an  aversion  that  amounted  to  horror. 
Rather  than  have  solicited  any  man's  vote,  he  would  have 
plucked  out  his  tongue. 

"But  it  was  not  long  before  everybody  knew  that  the 
General  Conference  had  made  a  wise  selection.  Dr.  Wil- 
son took  hold  of  his  new  position  without  any  parade,  but 
with  an  amazing  vigor.  The  whole  Church  felt  the  thrill 
of  his  touch.  He  worked  not  by  manipulation  but  by 
inspiration.  To  this  day  the  great  tides  of  interest  and 
activity  that  he  set  in  motion  are  still  flowing.  Believing 
in  missions  as  he  believed  in  Christ,  to  the  bottom  of  his 
soul,  he  communicated  his  faith  to  others. 

"Doubtless,  there  are  many  still  alive  who  heard  his 
great  speech  before  the  Holston  Conference  at  Wythe- 
ville  in  1881.  It  was  like  the  movement  of  an  army  with 
banners.  The  Conference  was  literally  electrified.  No- 
body went  hotne  to  make  thereafter  an  apology  for  taking 
missionary  collections.  In  all  quarters  the  same  story 
was  told  of  him.  His  addresses  and  sermons  were  enough 
to  wake  the  dead. " 

Bishop  Hendrix: 

"Alpheus  Waters  Wilson  was  a  wonderful  organizer 
He  became  known  to  the  Church  by  his  great  missionary 
secretaryship.  There  was  a  time  in  our  history  when  we 
faltered  in  the  march,  when  we  hesitated  about  going 
forward.  The  war  had  involved  us  in  serious  difficulties. 
Alpheus  W.  Wilson  was  chosen  the  Missionary  Secretary, 
the  great  Secretary  of  the  Foreign  Board  of  Missions  in 
1878,  and  from  that  time  until  today  a  new  era  in  our 
missionary  life  has  existed. 

85 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


"How  delighted  he  was  to  study  the  field!  How  in- 
tensely active  he  was  in  organizing  new  fields!  Aided  by 
his  good  wife  as  private  secretary,  he  often  burned  the 
midnight  oil  in  his  efforts.  Six  times  at  least  he  went 
abroad  in  this  great  mission,  three  times  of  the  number 
around  the  world.  A  favorite  visitor  in  great  mission 
fields,  it  was  his  joy  to  organize  the  great  mission  in  Japan, 
and  it  was  his  joy  to  visit  all  the  great  fields  except  Mexico; 
and  his  works  abound,  founded  in  great  wisdom,  in  great 
scholarship  with  a  depth  of  mercy. 

"He  inspired  men  with  confidence.  They  would  put 
into  his  hands  sums  amounting  to  fifteen  or  twenty 
thousand  dollars  and  say:  'Sir,  do  what  you  think  best 
with  that — found  a  school,  or  do  what  you  think  best.' 
A  friend  of  mine  said  to  him  in  my  presence:  ' Bishop,  if 
you  go  to  China  I  authorize  you  to  draw  on  me  for  $5,000 
for  such  work  as  you  deem  most  needed  there. '  Out  of 
that  came  the  great  Moore  Memorial  Church  founded  by 
a  townsman  of  mine  in  Kansas  City,  recognized  by  all  as 
the  best-equipped  plant  for  missionary  work  ever  known 
in  China.  So  in  all  his  work  he  had  the  confidence  of 
men;  they  believed  in  him. 

"He  made  a  great  secretary  of  missions.  The  Church 
will  never  cease  to  honor  the  memory  of  him  who  laid  the 
foundation  of  our  great  missionars^  work. " 

Bishop  Denny: 

"Not  since  the  days  of  Thomas  Coke,  the  first  bishop 
of  American  Methodism — indeed,  the  first  bishop  of  any 
Church  in  the  United  States — has  such  a  missionary  spirit 
been  given  to  the  Methodist  Church  in  America  as  was 
given  by  Bishop  Alpheus  Waters  Wilson.  The  breadth  of 
his  vision,  the  sure  ground  upon  which  he  placed  the 
missionary  enterprises  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Chiirch, 
South,  the  weight  with  which  he  laid  that  dut}^  on  the  con- 
science of  the  Church,  have  never  been  equaled  among  us. 
From  the  day  he  was  given  charge  of  that  work,  there  has 
been  no  backward  step  on  the  part  o£  our  Church;  and 
indeed  his  influence  has  been  broader  than  the  Church.  .  . 

86 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Since  his  election  to  the  Episcopacy,  he  has  spent  much  of 
his  time  in  mission  fields,  giving  personal  attention  to  the 
organization  and  administration  of  our  missionary  in- 
terests, and  many  times  circling  the  globe.  Through  all 
these  years  his  influence  at  home  has  been  a  steady  stream 
to  raise  yet  higher  the  Church's  appreciation  of  her  duty 
to  the  world." 

Bishop  Lambuth: 

"Bishop  Wilson  was  the  Secretary'  of  the  Board  of 
Missions  from  1878  to  1882.  During  that  short  time  he 
created  through  his  personality,  his  leadership  and  his 
presentation  of  the  claims  of  the  Gospel,  a  new  era  in  the 
missionary'  history  of  the  Church.  He  exhibited  a  strong 
grasp  of  fundamental  principles  underlying  the  Gospel, 
and  the  missionary'  enterprise. 

"He  sought  to  confront  the  conscience  with  God,  and 
thereby  create  a  sense  of  personal  obligation  to  earn,'  out 
that  part  of  the  scheme  of  redemption  which  is  committed 
to  man.  His  appeal  to  motive  was  central  and  primary — 
never  secondary.  That  motive  was  sought  for  and  found 
in  the  great  missionary  epistles  of  the  Apostle  to  the 
Gentiles. 

"The  spirit  of  the  great  secretary  was  Pauline.  While 
dwelling  upon  the  infinite  measure  of  Divine  grace  he 
believed  profoundly  in  the  sovereignty  of  God,  and  His 
right  to  control  a  man's  life.  He  therefore  with  the 
Apostles  stressed  the  call  of  God.  He  emphasized  the 
spirit  and  attitude  of  the  Apostle  in  his  Epistle  to  the 
Romans  when  he  successively  declared  '  I  am  debtor.  .  .  . 
I  am  ready.  ...  I  am  not  ashamed  of  the  Gospel  of 
Christ  for  it  is  the  power  of  God  unto  salvation  to  every 
one  that  believeth. ' 

"The  stewardship  of  money  was  not  discussed  in  parts, 
but  as  a  great  whole.  He  did  not  withhold  his  own 
slender  resources.  He  was  in  the  campaign  without  re- 
servation. All  he  had  was  on  the  altar,  and  in  this  act  of 
sacrificial  service  he  had  the  sympathy  and  co-operation 
of  his  family. 

87 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


"In  his  dealing  with  missionaries  Dr.  Wilson  was 
generous  in  his  provision  for  the  needs  of  their  work,  and, 
especially,  for  their  preparation  and  equipment  that  they 
might  render  the  most  intelligent  and  efficient  service 
possible.  In  this  he  was  far  ahead  of  his  generation  for 
he  moved  in  those  early  days  in  line  with  the  most  ap- 
proved and  advanced  modern  policies  in  the  setting  up  of  a 
mission  whether  it  involved  the  building  of  churches,  the 
establishment  of  educational  work  or  the  equipment  of 
hospitals.  Here  was  no  timidity,  no  hesitation,  no  with- 
holding of  what  was  essential  to  the  success  of  the  largest 
plans  for  the  extension  of  the  Kingdom.  He  planned  and 
worked  with  a  master  hand,  and  his  strokes  were  strong, 
bold,  and  true. 

The  Missionary  Bishop. 

"Upon  the  election  of  Dr.  A.  W.  Wilson  in  1882  to  the 
Episcopacy  he  was  assigned  to  work  abroad  and  plunged 
at  once  into  the  world  field.  As  a  traveler  he  did  not 
spare  himself  any  more  than  he  did  in  the  ofhce.  Six 
times  the  Oriental  fields  were  visited,  and  the  Latin 
American  fields  repeatedly.  These  were  not  superficial 
and  hurried  attempts  at  administrative  work,  but  time 
enough  was  given  to  deliberate  and  profotmd  study  of 
missionary  problems.  He  held  tenaciously  to  his  con- 
victions but  withal  was  open-minded,  and  reserved  the 
right  to  adjust  his  thinking  to  new  conditions. 

"In  all  the  constant  travel,  and  much  of  it  was  hard 
and  trying  to  a  man  of  his  age,  I  have  never  heard  him 
utter  a  complaint,  nor  did  he  count  it  a  hardship  to  prose- 
cute these  long  journeys  and  to  encounter  untoward 
conditions  including  more  than  one  severe  epidemic  of 
Asiatic  cholera  in  China  and  Japan,  and  the  plague  in 
India.  These  things  were  incidental  and  were  accepted 
as  a  matter  of  course.  They  did  not  turn  him  aside,  nor 
did  they  cause  a  moment's  hesitation  in  going  to  meet 
his  engagements  in  these  distant  fields. 

Bishop  Wilson  was  always  ready  to  preach.  I  have 
never  known  him  to  refuse.  He  presented  a  great  Gospel 
in  preaching  to  small  groups  of  missionaries  or  to  larger 

88 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


native  gatherings  through  an  interpreter.  He  gave  the 
best  that  was  in  him,  and  that  best  opened  up  a  depth  in 
the  Scriptures  that  became  a  well-spring  of  perennial  life 
and  power  to  the  missionary  and  to  the  native  preacher. 
His  inspiration  was  not  from  crowds.  It  came  from 
within.  In  dealing  with  the  missionaries  he  believed  that 
'  man  grows  with  the  greatness  of  his  purpose. '  As  God 
reveals  Himself  to  man,  man  grows.  He  grows  with  his 
apprehension  of  truth,  his  enlargement  of  sjrmpathy,  his 
deepening  motive,  and  in  his  ever-exalted  faith  and 
growing  purpose.  The  Bishop  also  held  that  the  mis- 
sionary must  grow  with  his  convert,  with  his  group  of  be- 
lievers, with  the  native  Church,  and  what  should  be  to 
him,  the  very  enlarging  conception  of  the  redemptive 
piu-pose  and  plan. 

"As  a  missionary  master  workman  himself  he  ever  fell 
back  upon  Christ  as  the  great  personal  dynamic.  He 
preached  an  imperial  Christ — one  in  whom  all  faith  must 
be  centered.  He  taught  that  all  work  must  be  related  to 
His  work,  and  all  life  vitalized  by  His  life.  He  insisted 
that  an  imperial  Christ  must  be  represented  by  a  gospel 
which  lays  its  claims  upon  every  man,  upon  all  of  man,  and 
upon  all  mankind. 

"During  his  administration  Bishop  Wilson,  accom- 
panied by  Dr.  Collins  Denny,  was  present  in  Kobe,  and 
presided  over  the  meeting  in  the  summer  of  1886  which 
opened  the  Japan  Mission.  He  heartily  favored  the  evan- 
gelistic policies  of  that  Mission  and  gave  his  influence  to ' 
the  establishment  of  the  Hiroshima  Girls'  School,  which 
has  grown  to  be  one  of  the  greatest  Christian  institutions 
for  young  women  in  the  Empire.  He  also  approved  of  the 
founding  of  the  Kwansei  Gakuin,  our  college  for  young  men, 
which,  starting  in  his  day  as  a  night  school,  has  grown  to  an 
enrollment  in  all  departments  of  over  1200  splendid  young 
men  and  boys.  It  was  to  this  institution  in  1889  that  he 
agreed  to  apply  $10,000  for  land  and  buildings  a  part  of 
the  special  contribution  of  Mr.  Thomas  Branch  of  Rich 
mond,  Va. 

"In  China,  the  Bishop  organized  the  China  Mission 
Annual  Conference  in  1886,    threw  the  strength  of  his  in- 

89 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


fluence  into  Buffington  Institute  at  Suchow,  and  later  on 
favored  the  larger  plans  of  Dr.  Young  J.  Allen  and  others 
in  the  establishment  of  the  Anglo-Chinese  College  in 
Shanghai,  the  McT^^eire  Institute  for  Girls,  and  later  on 
the  Suchow  University.  More  might  be  said  but  these 
lines  of  policy  and  of  effort  serve  to  indicate  the  masterful 
grasp  of  the  great  basic  elements  which  lie  at  the  heart  of 
the  missionary  enterprise.  It  was  to  him,  as  to  the  Apostle 
Paul,  a  world  enterprise,  and  one  worthy  of  all  that  was 
potential  and  actual  in  a  man's  life.  The  constraining 
motive  throughout,  did  not  lie  in  a  propaganda  nor  in 
denominational  exploitation.  While  there  was  no  re- 
laxing of  his  hold  upon  the  ideals  and  the  doctrines  which 
were  a  part  of  his  own  beloved  Church,  this  great  mis- 
sionary Bishop  stood  for  what  was  deeper  and  broader — 
the  truth  of  the  Fatherhood  of  God  revealed  in  and 
through  Jesus  Christ ;  and  what  was  the  central  motive  of 
all,  the  persistent  love,  the  sacrificial  death,  and  the 
glorious  resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  only  hope  of 
Glory,  and  the  only  hope  of  the  world. " 


90 


-;  ° 


CHAPTER  VII. 
The  Episcopacy  and  its  Responsibilities. 

The  General  Conference  of  1882,  which  met  in 
Nashville,  at  the  close  of  the  quadrennium  of  Dr. 
Wilson  as  Missionary  Secretary,  in  recognition  of  his 
prophetic  vision  and  matchless  leadership,  elected 
him  bishop  on  the  first  ballot.  He  was  the  only 
bishop  elected  on  that  ballot.  Those  who  were 
present  say  that  when  the  result  of  the  ballot  was  an- 
nounced there  was  no  change  in  his  countenance  and 
no  one  could  have  told  from  his  outward  demeanor 
that  he  was  conscious  that  his  life  was  to  be  so  greatly 
affected  by  it.  It  was  the  grave  responsibility  rather 
than  the  honor  that  impressed  him.  He  felt  that  a 
new  burden  had  been  placed  upon  him,  which  he 
could  not  shirk,  as  duty  to  him  had  a  sacred  meaning. 
In  this  field  of  largest  opportunities  and  responsibili- 
ties he  gave  thirty-four  years  of  service  to  the  Church 
and  to  Christianity  at  large,  the  value  of  which  defies 
all  attempts  of  human  measurement.  Sixteen  years 
of  the  thirty-four  he  was  Senior  Bishop  and  presided 
over  the  meetings  of  the  College  of  Bishops, 

Bishop  Hoss  has  characterized  the  long  and  dis- 
tinguished services  of  A.  W.  Wilson  as  a  member  of 
the  Episcopacy  in  this  manner: 

"At  the  General  Conference  of  1882,  Dr.  Wilson  was 
elected  Bishop  on  the  first  ballot.  Thouj^h  he  had  sought 
the  office  in  no  way,  he  accei^tcd  it  as  coming  in  the 
providential  order,  and  held  it  with  great  distinction  for 
thirty-four  years.     His  work  as  a  bishop  in  ever}^  part 

91 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


of  the  world  was  never  less  than  distinguished.  Whether 
as  a  presiding  officer  in  the  Conference,  or  as  a  preacher  in 
the  pulpit,  or  as  a  leader  and  guide  in  the  deliberations  of 
the  Cabinet,  he  ranked  easily  with  the  men  of  renown. 
No  man  can  write  the  history  of  the  Church  and  leave  him 
out.  There  was  no  one  of  his  colleagues  with  whom  it  is 
easy  to  compare  him.  But  I  certainly  do  not  go  amiss 
when  I  say  that  he  was  the  equal  of  William  McKendree 
or  of  Henry  B.  Bascon,  or  of  George  F.  Pierce,  or  of  Hol- 
land N.  McTyeire,  or  of  Enoch  M.  Marvin.  Though 
differing  from  each  of  them  in  certain  respects,  he  was  en- 
tirely worthy  to  be  mentioned  in  the  same  class  with  them 
all.  His  older  brethren  used  to  speak  of  him  as  'Web- 
sterian. '  Strangely  enough  some  persons  have  charac- 
terized him  as  lacking  imagination.  In  very  truth,  his 
imagination  was  as  glorious  as  a  tropical  forest.  It 
blazed  at  times  like  the  sun  descending  through  a  sky  that 
was  full  of  rifted  clouds.  Though  scarcely  anybody  ever 
thought  of  him  as  a  rhetorician,  yet  he  marshalled  his 
words  with  a  masterly  skill  and  ease.  I  have  heard  him 
when  it  seemed  that  he  would  inevitably  tangle  and  in- 
volve himself  in  his  thick  rushing  torrent  of  speech.  But 
he  never  did.  Just  when  he  appeared  to  be  on  the  point  of 
confusion,  he  was  sure  to  light  upon  the  right  word  and 
ride  out  in  triumph. 

"I  have  followed  his  tracks  through  many  countries. 
Always  it  was  easy  to  see  he  had  been  there,  and  left  an 
impression.  Especially,  however,  did  he  do  a  mighty 
work  in  the  Orient.  Time  will  not  obliterate  the  in- 
fluence which  he  exerted  upon  the  infant  Churches  of 
Japan,  Korea,  and  China,  and  no  doubt  it  will  appear  'in 
that  day '  when  '  the  books  are  opened '  by  Him  who  sits 
upon  the  throne. 

"During  all  his  later  years  he  was  Senior  Bishop  of  the 
Church,  and  discharged  the  duties  of  that  position  \\'ith 
singular  effectiveness.  In  the  course  of  time,  his  judg- 
ments of  law  and  usage  came  to  be  accepted  almost  without 
hesitation  by  his  colleagues  and  brethren,  and  the  admi- 
ration with  which  they  had  always  looked  up  to  him 


92 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


deepened  into  an  almost  fathomless  love.  He  was  not  in 
the  least  autocratic  nor  self-assertive.  While  he  generally 
spoke  as  one  who  knew,  he  was  modest  before  all  men. 

"He  represented  his  Church  in  four  Ecumenical  Con- 
ferences, and  never  failed  to  attract  the  attention  and 
command  the  respect  of  those  bodies.  For  many  3'ears 
he  was  also  a  member  of  the  Joint  Commission  on  Fed- 
eration, and  no  one  of  the  Commissioners  was  listened  to 
more  eagerly  than  he.  The  men  of  the  North  and  of  the 
South  alike  looked  up  to  him  as  a  veritable  Captain  of  the 
Lord's  hosts.  At  the  close  of  the  Chattanooga  sitting  in 
1912  Bishop  Cranston  and  all  his  colleagues  rose  to  their 
feet  and  pressed  around  him  with  eager  interest  as  he 
made  his  closing  speech,  which  sounded  as  if  one  of  the 
old  prophets  had  come  back  to  earth  with  a  message  from 
God. 

"When  he  was  superannuated  at  the  age  of  eighty 
years,  I  took  occasion  to  say :  '  My  brethren,  I  fear  that 
you  have  made  a  mistake.  It  wotdd  have  been  better  in 
my  judgment,  to  have  retired  three  or  four  of  the  rest  of 
us,  and  have  left  him  in  place.  The  vacancy  in  the  Col- 
lege of  Bishops  would  not  then  have  been  so  great. ' 
That  was  my  opinion  then,  and  has  been  my  opinion  ever 
since.  Long,  long  will  it  be  before  another  man  arises  fit 
to  be  matched  with  him  in  intellectual  vigor,  or  in  the 
depth  of  spiritual  experience.  Blessed  be  God  for  having 
bestowed  so  great  a  gift  upon  the  Church.  He  sits  now  in 
the  heavenly  places  of  Christ,  and  meditates  on  the  great 
theme  which  he  so  long  preached. " 

Bishop  Denny  has  thus  spoken  of  his  aged  col- 
league, whom  he  loved  as  a  father : 

"No  one  in  the  Church  was  surprised  when  at  the  close 
of  his  quadrennium  as  Missionary  Secretary  the  General 
Conference  of  1882  elected  him  to  the  Episcopacy,  the  only 
man  on  the  first  ballot.  For  more  than  thirty-four  years 
he  filled  with  power  the  chief  office  in  the  Church.  More 
than  any  of  our  Bishops  since  Coke  he  was  sent  across  the 
seas,  and  the  Church  had  come  to  look  upon  him  as  our 

93 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


chief  missionary  bishop.  His  labors  at  home  were  no  less 
constant,  and  throughout  our  borders  and  beyond  he  did 
his  work,  everywhere  commanding  the  confidence  and  love 
of  the  people.  Perhaps  no  man  can  meet  the  delicate  and 
heavy  responsibilities  of  the  Episcopacy  without  mistakes. 
Bishop  Wilson  was  a  man  who  gave  large  trust  to  those  in 
whose  character  and  piety  he  believed.  At  times  he 
trusted  some  of  these  men  with  work  they  were  not 
qualified  to  do.  No  man  ever  suffered  at  his  hands.  He 
was  a  model  of  firmness,  yet  careful  of  the  feelings  of  his 
brethren.  He  was  detached  as  are  few  men.  His  likes 
and  dislikes  did  not  seem  to  enter  into  his  work.  He 
knew  the  history  and  law  of  Methodism,  and  he  passionate- 
ly yet  sanely  loved  the  Chvirch.  Keen  of  insight,  knowing 
men  and  measures,  grasping  with  his  giant  mind  the 
tendencies  of  the  times,  knowing  that  the  work  of  God 
must  be  done,  can  be  done  only  by  the  Spirit  of  God  work- 
ing the  redemptive  powers  of  the  cross  of  Christ  in  the 
hearts  of  men,  he  went  his  patient  and  courageous  way, 
without  reliance  on  the  temporal  and  vanishing  powers  of 
this  present  world.  He  believed  his  Lord  was  equal  to 
every  demand  of  time  and  eternity,  and  that  out  of  the 
dark  chaos  of  this  present  day  the  Church  of  God  would 
stand  forth  with  the  light  of  her  Lord  on  her  face  and  the 
song  of  his  salvation  breaking  from  her  lips.  We  thank 
God  for  Bishop  Wilson's  long,  devoted,  and  honored 
Episcopacy." 

He  interpreted  the  voice  of  the  Church  as  the 
voice  of  God,  and  never  did  he  flinch  in  the  face  of 
responsibility.  Once  when  he  was  presiding  over  a 
Conference,  one  of  the  candidates  for  admission  into 
full  connection  objected  to  answering  the  questions 
concerning  Christian  perfection,  on  the  ground  that 
he  was  already  perfect.  The  Bishop  told  him  that 
he  did  not  believe  him  and  that  thousands  of  better 
men  than  he — all  the  generations  of  Methodist 
preachers — had  answered  them,  and  that  he  would 

94 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


not  put  the  vote  on  his  admission  until  the  Con- 
ference had  expressed  its  mind.  In  a  few  minutes 
the  Conference  made  known  its  view  of  the  case  in 
unmistakable  terms. 

"When  the  candidate  found  that  he  was  not 
taken  at  his  own  estimate  of  himself  and  was  likely 
to  be  left  out,"  said  the  Bishop  in  speaking  of  the 
incident,  "he  began  to  shuffle  and  tried  evasion  until 
at  the  suggestion  of  one  of  the  preachers,  I  repeated 
the  questions  and  insisted  upon  a  direct  answer. 
Then  he  surrendered  and  the  Conference  laughed  and 
let  him  in. " 

On  one  occasion  he  performed  an  official  duty 
from  which  most  men  would  have  shrunk. 

"Did  you  not  feel  it  unpleasant ?"  he  was  asked 
after  it  had  been  done. 

"Yes,  as  a  man, "  he  replied,  "but  as  an  officer  of 
the  Church,  I  did  not  let  myself  have  any  feeling 
about  it. " 

During  the  thirty-four  years  he  was  Bishop,  he 
saw  the  membership  of  the  Church  grow  from  860,- 
687  to  2,154,307,  the  membership  of  the  Sunday 
School  increase  from  524,763  to  1,924,698,  the  mis- 
sionary offerings  for  the  extension  of  Christ's  King- 
dom at  home  and  abroad  advance  from  $581,222  to 
$1,749,283  and  marvelous  development  made  in  the 
mission  fields.  The  Woman's  Missionary  work 
which  had  its  genesis  in  a  society  at  Trinity  Church, 
Baltimore,  and  which  has  been  referred  to  in  another 
chapter,  has  become  of  surpassing  magnitude,  en- 
listing the  intelligent  and  consecrated  leadership  of 
the  women  of  our  Church.  It  was  in  its  infancy  at 
the  meeting  of  the  General  Conference  which  elected 

95 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


him  bishop,  having  been  recognized  for  the  first  time 
by  the  preceding  General  Conference,  but  it  had  made 
such  progress  during  the  quadrennium  as  to  call 
forth  this  paragraph  by  the  Bishops  in  their  Episco- 
pal address. 

"A  new  chapter  is  to  be  written  in  this  connection. 
That  timely  auxiliary,  the  Woman's  Missionary  Society, 
correlated  by  the  General  Conference  four  years  ago,  has 
done  well,  and  justified  the  recognition  then  made.  So 
far  as  results  have  appeared,  its  affairs  have  been  managed 
efficiently,  economically,  and  judiciously.  The  manage- 
ment has  adhered  to  the  line  of  collection  and  disburse- 
ment prescribed  by  law,  and  instead  of  lessening  the 
amount  flowing  by  ordinary  channels  into  the  treasury  of 
the  Missionary  Board,  it  is  our  opinion  that  the  money 
reported  by  the  Woman's  Missionary  Society  is  a  clear 
gain.  By  their  excellent  monthly  paper  useful  informa- 
tion has  been  circulated,  and  by  their  personal  efforts  the 
zeal  for  Missions  has  been  generally  quickened.  The 
Society  has  sent  out  five  well-chosen  missionaries — two 
to  China,  one  to  Brazil,  and  two  to  the  Mexican  Border 
Mission — who  co-operate  with  the  Board  of  Missions 
harmoniously  in  their  respective  fields  as  teachers.  The 
Society  is  also  building  at  Laredo,  an  important  station  on 
the  Rio  Grande,  a  boarding-school  for  girls,  and  its  agents 
are  occupying  two  such  school-buildings,  erected  by  its 
own  funds,  in  China.  Ground  has  been  secured,  and 
plans  made  for  a  girls'  boarding-school  in  Piracicaba, 
Brazil.  Money  raised  to  date  $64,910.  Their  Mis- 
sionary Advocate  has  paid  its  own  expenses,  and  brought 
$1,000  into  the  Society's  treasury.  We  are  advised  that 
a  memorial  will  be  sent  up  requesting  certain  readjust- 
ments of  the  Society  to  the  Board  of  Missions,  and  to  its 
own  recognized  field  of  operations.  It  is  needless  that 
we  recommend  it  to  your  most  cordial  and  prompt  con- 
sideration." 

96 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


The  women  raised  for  their  work  in  1916  $594,039. 
Southern  Methodist  has  profound  cause  for  grati- 
tude to  Almighty  God  for  its  noble  womanhood. 

He  saw  the  educational  institutions  of  the  Church 
increase  from  73,  which  reported  $2,389,000  worth  of 
property  and  endowments  aggregating  $978,000  to 
140  imiversities,  colleges  and  academies,  classified  on 
a  scientific  basis  and  controlled  by  the  Church,  with 
$16,091,809  worth  of  property  and  endowments  ag- 
gregating $9,160,467.  Though  the  Vanderbilt  Uni- 
versity was  lost  to  the  Church  during  that  period,  the 
result  was  the  founding  of  two  other  great  universi- 
ties, Emory  at  Atlanta,  Ga.,  and  the  Southern  Meth- 
odist University  at  Dallas,  Texas,  which  promise  to 
exert  a  tremendous  influence  in  shaping  the  civiliza- 
tion of  the  South  according  to  the  highest  standards 
and  in  promoting  the  best  interests  of  the  Kingdom 
of  God. 

He  saw  the  Publishing  House  grow  from  an  in- 
stitution seriously  crippled  by  debt  into  a  great 
agency  for  the  publication  and  distribution  of  reli- 
gious literature  with  sales  exceeding  $1,000,000  an- 
nually and  branches  in  Dallas,  Texas,  Richmond, 
Virginia,  and  Shanghai,  China. 

He  saw  the  Church  Extension,  the  Epworth 
League,  the  Deaconess  and  the  Laymen's  Missionary 
Movements  spring  into  being  in  response  to  the  needs 
of  the  Church.  The  growth  of  the  Church  Exten- 
sion work  under  the  administration  of  the  present 
Secretary  has  been  little  short  of  phenomenal,  and 
has  created  an  epoch  in  this  phase  of  the  Church's 
activity.     Among   other   noteworthy   achievements 


97 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


its  General  Loan  Fund  has  gone  beyond  the  million 
dollar  mark. 

He  saw  better  provision  made  for  the  support  of 
the  Church's  claimants  and  the  efficiency  of  Church 
organizations  improved  by  a  change  of  their  policies  to 
meet  new  conditions. 

He  saw  the  growing  fraternal  relations  of  the  two 
great  Episcopal  Methodisms  result  in  the  adoption 
of  a  common  hymnal.  These  are  some  of  the  things 
done  by  the  Church  during  his  bishopric.  All  in  all, 
the  progress  of  the  Church,  it  has  been  said,  is  with- 
out a  parallel  in  the  history  of  religious  institutions. 
The  Bishop  could  have  well  looked  back  over  that 
period  and  exclaimed,  "What  hath  God  wrought!" 
But  he  had  no  lust  for  numbers  or  desire  to  make  a 
showing  that  would  commend  itself  to  the  world. 
He  had  the  conviction  that,  as  the  Church  is  spiritual 
in  character,  the  further  it  is  removed  from  worldly 
motives,  standards  and  ambitions  the  more  progress 
it  will  make.  He  thought  of  the  Church  as  dwelling 
in  an  atmosphere  far  above  that  of  principalities  and 
powers — an  atmosphere  created  by  the  very  presence 
of  Jehovah.  He  was  never  unduly  elated  over  the 
Church's  prosperity  but  felt  that  after  we  had  done 
all  that  was  commanded  us  we  were  unprofitable 
servants.  In  some  respects  he  was  not  unlike  Joshua 
Soule,  especially  in  his  unalterable  opposition  to 
such  innovations  which  he  regarded  as  likely  to  be 
hurtful  to  our  Zion. 

A  volume  of  no  small  proportions  could  and  prob- 
ably will  be  written  covering  that  long  period  when 
Alpheus  W.  Wilson  was  a  dominant  force  in  the 
Episcopacy,  embracing  his  administrative  work,  his 


98 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


interpretations  of  law,  his  constructive  policies  in 
mission  fields,  his  matchless  preaching,  and  his 
magnificent  leadership,  but  the  spirit  of  these  things 
has  become  a  part  of  something  more  durable  than 
books — the  very  character  and  constitution  of  the 
Church. 

This  modest  volume  simply  touches  a  few  of  the 
high  places  in  his  official  life  and  leaves  the  rest  to  a 
future  biographer. 

Before  he  was  elected  Bishop  he  was  a  member  of 
the  General  Conferences  of  1870, 1874, 1878,  and  1882. 
It  was  not  long  after  his  election  to  the  Episcopacy 
that  our  mission  fields  were  placed  under  his  special 
supervision,  in  addition  to  his  duties  in  the  home 
land.  In  1886,  1888,  1890,  1898,  1900  and  1907  he 
made  official  visits  to  our  missions  in  the  Orient;  in 
1892  and  1902  his  Episcopal  duties  led  him  to  Brazil. 
He  was  president  of  the  Board  of  Missions  from  1900 
to  1914.  He  represented  our  Church  in  the  organi- 
zation of  the  Methodist  Church  in  Japan,  and  his 
views  were  accorded  great  weight  by  his  colleagues. 
He  was  fraternal  delegate  to  the  British  Wesleyan 
Conference  in  London  in  1912— the  last  delegate  from 
our  Church  to  that  body.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Ecumenical  Conferences  of  1881  and  1901  held  at 
London,  and  of  those  of  1891  and  1911  held  at  Wash- 
ington and  Toronto  respectively.  He  was  a  member 
of  the  Federal  Council  and  of  the  Commission  on 
Unification  from  our  Church,  and  had  been  appointed 
to  preach  the  sermon  on  the  occasion  of  the  meeting 
of  the  Joint  Commission  in  December  1916  in  Balti- 
more. 

99 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


At  the  General  Conference  in  Birmingham  in 
1906,  there  was  a  strong  movement  in  favor  of  the  re- 
statement of  the  Articles  of  Religion.  After  the 
question  had  been  thoroughly  discussed,  in  view  of 
its  importance,  the  Conference  requested  the  Bishops 
to  give  their  opinions  on  the  subject.  Bishop  Wil- 
son, Candler,  Hoss,  Hendrix  and  Galloway  ad- 
dressed the  Conference.  Bishop  Wilson's  speech  on 
that  occasion,  entirely  impromptu,  has  been  con- 
sidered by  some  of  his  friends  to  have  been  one  of  his 
most  notable  utterances.  At  its  conclusion  the  Con- 
ference arose  and  sung  "How  Firm  a  Foundation." 
It  is  more  than  probable  that  if  a  vote  had  been  taken 
immediately  after  this  speech  that  the  re-statement 
report  would  have  been  lost,  but  its  supporters 
wisely  arranged  for  a  postponement  of  the  vote  for 
several  days  when  the  report  was  adopted.  The 
College  of  Bishops  against  the  protest  of  Bishop  Wil- 
son made  him  Chairman  of  the  Commission  on  the 
Ecumenical  Statement  of  Methodist  Doctrine  which 
selection  was  approved  by  a  rising  vote  of  the  Con- 
ference. As  is  well  known  the  whole  movement 
ultimately  came  to  naught. 

The  report  on  re-statement,  as  it  passed  the  Con- 
ference, and  the  speech  of  Bishop  Wilson  are  of 
sufficient  interest  in  connection  with  his  life  to  be 
reprinted  in  this  chapter. 

Special  Committee  on  the  New  Statement  of  Meth- 
odist Faith  and  Doctrine. 
Report  No.  1. 

"Your  committee,  to  whom  was  referred  the  resolu- 
tion on  the  need  at  this  time  of  a  new  statement  of  Metho- 
dist faith  and  doctrine,  desire  to  report  that  they  have 


100 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


given  the  resolution  careful  consideration,  and  believe 
it  is  wise  to  take  such  action  as  is  proposed  in  the  resolu- 
tion.    The  resolution  reads  as  follows: 

"'Believing  that  the  different  branches  of  world-wide 
Methodism  that  are  represented  in  the  Ecumenical  Method- 
ist Conference  can  and  should  unite  in  the  preparation  of 
such  a  statement  of  our  common  faith  as  is  needed,  and  be- 
lieving that  this  General  Conference  should  take  such  steps 
as  may  be  necessary  to  secure  in  the  early  future  the  co- 
operation of  other  representative  Methodist  Churches  in 
the  preparation  of  a  new  statement  of  our  faith,  we  there- 
fore offer  the  following  resolution : 

"'Resolved,  That  the  College  of  Bishops  be  requested 
to  appoint  a  commission  of  five  members,  one  of  whom 
shall  be  a  bishop,  who  shall  be  members  of  the  next 
Ecumenical  Conference,  this  commission  to  invite  other 
branches  of  Methodism  to  unite  with  us  in  the  preparation 
of  our  doctrinal  system  as  it  is  called  for  in  our  day,  and 
this  commission  shall  represent  our  Church  in  the  pre- 
paration of  the  same. ' 

"We  recommend  the  passage  of  the  resolution  herein 
proposed,  with  the  understanding  that  the  preparation  of 
this  new  statement  of  doctrine  shall  be  undertaken  by  the 
commission  only  when  such  co-operation  on  the  part  of 
the  other  representative  branches  of  Methodism  shall 
have  been  secured  as  shall  give  to  the  statement  prepared 
an  ectunenical  character  and  make  it  an  expression  of  the 
faith  of  world-wide  Methodism.  This  commission  shall 
report  back  to  this  General  Conference,  four  years  hence, 
the  result  of  their  labors.  We  further  recommend  that 
the  Publishing  Agents  be  authorized  to  meet  whatever 
expenses  may  be  incurred  by  the  commission  in  the  dis- 
charge of  their  duties. 

"W.  F.  TiLLETT, 

"W.  R.  Lambuth,    • 
"C.W.Carter." 

The  speech  is  printed  as  it  appeared  in  The  Daily 
Christian  Advocate  of  the  Conference. 


101 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


"Bishop  Wilson:  I  am  at  a  ver}'  great  disadvantage. 
I  had  no  idea  of  entering  into  this  discussion  at  all,  and  it 
is  not  a  matter  to  be  enterprised  or  taken  in  hand  un- 
advisedly or  suddenly.  It  requires  some  thought,  and  I 
do  not  want  to  express  myself  carelessly  or  indefinitely  or 
vaguely,  so  I  can  only  speak  very  briefly  and  with  reference 
to  but  one  or  two  points  that  I  have  heard  stated  in  the 
speech  of  Dr.  Tillett.  I  did  not  hear  the  paper  read,  and  I 
am  somewhat  at  a  loss  on  that  account.  In  the  first  place, 
I  want  it  distinctly  understood,  whatever  changes  may  go 
on  in  the  world,  or  in  the  Church,  I  stand  by  this  funda- 
mental thing — Jesus  Christ  the  same  yesterday  and  to-day 
and  forever.  And  the  thing  that  expresses  him  most 
satisfactorily  and  clearly  to  the  conscience,  I  will  say, 
using  an  apostolic  form  of  speech,  of  the  people  is  the 
thing  that  is  most  likely  to  endure  throughout  the  genera- 
tions. There  are  a  good  many  things  that  are  shaken. 
Our  polity  will  change,  our  very  speech  will  change,  and 
our  forms  of  life  will  change.  Two  or  three  generations 
hence  our  Methodists,  just  as  true  as  ourselves  to  the  fun- 
damental faith,  will  take  very  different  xdews  of  the  ap- 
pHcation  of  great  spiritual  facts  to  the  conditions  and  facts 
of  our  hves.  But  there  are  some  things  that  do  not 
change,  and  never  will  change,  and  the  statement  of 
them  for  the  most  part  is  made  in  terms  so  simple 
that  they  cannot  be  misunderstood;  and  they  are  so 
broad  at  the  same  time  and,  as  I  think,  adequate  that 
it  will  be  very  difficult  for  any  man  to  add  anything 
to  them.  I  do  not  agree  with  Dr.  Tillett  as  to  the 
inadequacy  of  our  Twenty-five  Articles  of  Religion. 
There  are  two  or  three  of  the  Articles  which  perhaps,  if 
they  were  to  be  vtTitten  over  again,  I  might  put  in  other 
form.  He  might  have  gone  further  back  than  Archbishop 
Cranmer  if  he  had  sought  for  the  sources  of  them.  Arch- 
bishop Cranmer  copied  almost  Hterally  what  he  had  found 
in  the  old  Latin  Fathers  and  in  the  Greek  Fathers  before 
them,  and  these  terms  of  our  faith  can  be  traced  back  al- 
most to  apostolic  times.  We  are  not  getting  up  new 
things,  we  have  hold  of  the  expression  and  utterance  of  the 

102 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


faith  of  the  Church  as  they  have  come  down  to  us  through 
the  ages.  There  is  very  little  exception  to  be  made  to  this 
statement.  The  first  of  our  Articles  of  faith  deals  with 
the  fundamentals  of  Christianity  and  as  to  these  things 
they  state  nothing  new,  that  had  not  been  held  by  the 
Church  through  the  centuries  before.  What  he  named  as 
the  anti-Romish  Articles  were  the  statements  of  our 
Protestant  faith;  not  as  new  things  at  all,  though  they 
might  have  been  set  in  controversial  form,  but  they  were 
the  statements  of  things  our  Protestant  fathers  believed, 
and  they  sustained  their  behef  by  the  proof;  and  these 
things  were  held  in  the  apostolic  times  and  by  the  sub- 
apostolic  fathers.  There  is  not  a  new  thing  in  our  Articles 
of  faith,  and  they  all  cluster  about  the  one  central  figure, 
you  cannot  separate  a  single  one  from  him,  unless  it  be,  if 
you  want  to  look  at  it  in  the  secular  light,  our  article  in 
relation  to  citizenship  and  the  country  we  belong  to;  and 
we  get  our  authority  for  that  direct  from  him.  Even  to  us 
through  the  ages,  there  is  very  little  want  to  look  at  it  in 
the  secular  light,  or  vary  its  form  from  our  form  of  faith  in 
Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God.  I  rather  pity  the  man  who 
cannot  find  the  materials  of  our  faith  in  those  twenty-five 
articles.  (Applause.)  I  think  if  I  should  undertake  a 
course  of  lectures  on  them  it  would  require  an  exhaustion 
of  even  almost  those  terms  that  Dr.  Tillett  required  to  be 
stated  for  the  first  time  as  distinctively  "Wesley an.  " 

"J.  J.  Tigert:  Dr.  Summers  wrote  over  a  thousand 
octavo  pages  on  them. 

"Bishop  Wilson:  You  can  go  to  Summers'  book  if 
you  want  to  find  out  about  them.  It  is  true  for  the  most 
part,  our  people,  the  great  body  of  Christians,  are  not 
dependent  upon  these  Articles  of  Faith  as  written  out  and 
handed  down  to  us.  Their  religion  does  not  depend  upon 
them.  They  get  religion  in  the  first  instance — that  is, 
they  are  converted  and  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost,  but 
their  faith,  if  you  come  to  examine  it,  you  will  find  con- 
forms to  these  Articles  of  Faith,  even  if  they  have  never 
read  them.  They  are  the  normal  outcome  of  our  spiritual 
experience,  and  have  been  always  there.     The  Church  did 


103 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


not  formulate  Articles  of  Faith  first,  and  then  proceed  to 
shape  its  Christian  experience  upon  the  ground  and  after 
the  model  of  those  Articles  of  Faith.     It  was  a  very  simple 
faith  in  the  beginning.     They  believed  in  Jesus  Christ  our 
Lord,  and  as  the  inevitable  outcome  of  that  they  began 
to  broaden  in  their  views  of  him  and  put  him  in  his  true 
place  in  relation  to  thought  and  life  and  everything,  and  by 
and  by  these  found  expression  in  the  terms  of  faith  as  we 
have  them,  the  manifold  creeds,  and  we  cannot  get  rid  of 
them,  and  never  will  until  we  get  rid  of  that  which  is  funda- 
mental and  lies  below  the  whole  of  our  spiritual  experience. 
The  rock  on  which  we  build  is  not  a  creed  and  not  a  literal 
statement  of  any  fact,  or  anything  except  Jesus  Christ  and 
Him  crucified.     The  rock  on  which  we  build  is  the  revela- 
tion of  Jesus  Christ,  who  is  in  us  by  the  spirit  of  the  living 
God;  and  the  Church  and  Wesleyanism  has  revived  it  in 
the  Church  more  perhaps  than  any  other  ecclesiastical 
system — the  Church  has  built  upon  that  from  the  begin- 
ning.    It  has  not  pretended  to  have  any  other  foundation 
than  Jesus  Christ,  and  it  is  simply  in  all  its  Articles  the 
faith  of  the  heart  giving  expression  to  these  convictions 
which  have  necessarily  and  normally  resulted  from  their 
faith  in  Jesus  Christ  as  the  Son  of  God — a  faith  wrought 
within  them  by  the  spirit  of  God ;  and  we  cannot  get  away 
from  those  elements  of  our  life.     Now,  I  am  perfectly 
satisfied  myself  with  the  Articles  as  we  have  them.     I 
think  they  will  satisfy  the  faith  of  the  world  for  many 
generations  to  come;  but  there  is  just  one  thing  I  am  a 
little  afraid  of.     This  is  not  the  time  to  be  making  changes 
in  the  old,  venerable,  the  soHd,  the  established  statements 
of  our  faith  which  we  have  had  throughout  the  centuries 
and  which  have  satisfied  the  broadest  and  best  of  the  minds 
of  our  fathers.     We  have  not  done  with  higher  criticism. 
Wait  until  it  reaches  its  conclusions.     (Applause.)     We 
have  not  done  with  the  assaults,  the  needless  assaults,  of 
science  upon   our  faith.     Wait   until   these   things   are 
settled.     When  you  get  the  last  and  best  conclusion  of 
these  investigations  into  the  Scriptures  of  God  and  their 
relations  to  our  common  life,  when  you  have  settled  the 
points  of  agreements  and  difference  between  us  and  the 


104 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


men  who  are  holding  out  the  materialism  of  the  world  as 
its  best  and  highest  thing — when  you  have  all  these  mat- 
ters settled,  you  can  come  then  to  fix  upon  some  state- 
ment in  advance  of  anything  you  have,  and  that  will 
perhaps  move  and  satisfy  the  heart  and  conscience  of  the 
Church,  but  you  make  your  changes  now  while  the  air  is 
full  of  discord  and  the  notes  of  dissonance  are  jarring  upon 
our  ears  from  day  to  day,  many  of  our  young  men  going 
into  our  theological  schools  do  not  know  exactly  where 
they  stand. 

' '  Bishop  Hoss :  And  don't  know  when  they  come  out, 
either. 

"Bishop  Wilson:  Yes,  and  do  not  know  when  they 
come  out — and  I  will  venture  to  affirm  you  cannot  phrase 
an  Article  of  Faith  to-day  that  will  satisfy  the  mind  of  the 
great  body  of  theological  students  as  they  come  out  from 
our  theological  schools.  The  time  has  not  come  for  it  yet 
brethren.  Let  us  stand  where  we  are  until  we  can  see 
through  the  mists  a  little  more  clearly  and  the  darkness 
shall  be  dissipated  and  out  of  the  clearer  heaven  shall  come 
to  us  the  only  thing  that  can  settle  our  faith  and  satisfy 
our  consciences,  the  revelation  of  the  Son  of  God  to  the 
heart  of  the  whole  Church.  Then  may  we  be  able  to  state 
a  little  more  definitely  and  accurately,  perhaps,  what  we 
have  in  our  present  form  of  statement. 

"I  am  a  Httle  afraid  of  putting  these  spiritual  ex- 
periences into  the  frigid  forms  of  a  creed,  and  things  that 
we  have  stated  creedally.  Paul  would  not  do  it,  'We 
have  no  dominion  over  your  faith, '  he  wrote  to  the  Cor- 
inthians, *we  are  helpers  of  your  joy.'  The  form  of 
spiritual  experience  varies  with  the  characteristics  of  the 
man,  and  you  cannot  put  any  statement  of  it  in  such  shape 
as  that  it  will  meet  the  requirements  of  all  who  have  or 
profess  to  have  faith  in  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.  We  had 
rather  a  sad  instance  of  it — it  is  true  it  comes  from  outside 
and  the  reference  may  be  criticised  on  that  ground — but 
we  had  a  sad  instance  of  the  utter  hopelessness  of  any  such 
attempt  in  Mr,  James's '  Varieties  of  Christian  Experience.' 
But  if  you  imdertake  to  put  your  Christian  experience  in 
frigid  form,  in  letters  graven  in  stone  instead  of  being 

105 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


written  in  the  heart  you  will  inevitably  offend  some  of 
God's  choicest  ones.  You  will  come  athwart  some  of  the 
finest  and  subtlest  experiences  of  our  spiritual  life.  You 
will  make  many  wonder  if  they  have  ever  known  Jesus 
Christ.  You  will  start  doubt  and  bring  disaster  where  now 
there  is  the  satisfaction  of  assured  faith.  I  do  not  want 
anything  of  that  kind;  and  when  we  touch  that  side  of 
things,  I  would  rather  leave  that  to  go  out  in  God's  Spirit 
than  put  it  down  in  bald  letters  on  paper  and  print  it  out 
for  the  criticism  of  the  critical  ones  of  our  theological 
schools.     Don't  let  us  do  it,  brethren. 

"There  is  only  one  point  on  which  I  might  find  agree- 
ment with  Dr.  Tillett's  statement.  I  have  no  objection  to 
the  Commission  that  shall  take  Wesley's  fifty-two  sermons 
and  his  Expositor}^  Notes  and  glean  out  of  them  the  essen- 
tial things  and  shape  up  what  are  standards  of  doctrine, 
not  the  Articles  of  Faith,  if  you  please.  We  have  never 
regarded  ourselves  as  bound  by  ever>'thing  that  is  written 
in  the  fifty-two  sennons,  but  they  contain  the  essence  of 
our  faith,  and  are  the  things  about  which  men  can  preach. 
We  can  preach  them  a  great  deal  easier  than  we  can  put 
them  in  creedal  form.  We  want  that  understood.  A  man 
may  preach  about  a  great  many  things,  and  ever}'  man  will 
have  his  own  way  of  preaching  them.  You  don't  preach 
them  as  I  do.  (Laughter.)  And  my  brethren  of  the  Col- 
lege of  Bishops  don't  preach  them  as  I  do.  We  have  the 
same  fundamental  truths  and  the  fundamental  experience, 
but  it  shapes  out  in  manifold  form.  Sometimes  it  glows 
like  the  glory  of  the  sunset,  sometimes  the  very  heavens 
are  opened  and  the  cr}-stal  clearness  of  the  throne  is  before 
us.  Sometimes  it  is  a  mere  glimmer  of  the  light  along  the 
darkness  of  a  shaded  valley ;  sometimes  it  comes  in  splendid 
landscape  fonn ;  sometimes  it  is  a  mere  oasis  in  the  desert — 
it  doesn't  matter  when  or  how  it  comes,  the  same  fact  is  at 
the  bottom  of  it,  that  the  Spirit  of  God  is  working  there, 
and  we  want  every  man  to  tell  just  what  he  knows  about 
it.  If  he  doesn't  know  anything  about  it,  don't  let  him 
preach — in  God's  name  don't  let  him  preach.  If  he  knows 
anything,  let  him  tell  it  in  his  own  way.     He  will  not  tell 


106 


1.  House  oil  Chark'8  Circuit,  where  Biiihop  Wilson  boarded  duriug 

the  first  year  of  hia  ministry 

2.  Bishop  aud  Mrs.  Wilson  at  McTyeire  Home,  Shanghai,  China 

(1901) 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


it  in  my  way,  or  in  your  way,  but  in  the  way  God  intended 
him  to  tell  it. 

"  Touch  the  Ark  of  God  lightly,  brethren.  It  may  get 
to  be  obsolete  sometime.  The  old  Tabernacle  is  laid 
away,  and  the  Ark  is  lost;  but  while  we  have  it,  don't  put 
profane  hands  upon  it.  It  holds  within  its  covers  sacred 
things.  A  higher  law  and  testimony  than  Moses  ever  gave, 
a  more  fruitful  branch  than  ever  Aaron  offered  to  be  laid 
away,  and  we  cannot  afford  to  let  those  things  perish 
lightly.  Holy  everything  that  touches  the  inner  exper- 
ience of  man  as  among  the  sanctities  of  life,  only  to  be  laid 
bare  in  the  presence  of  Him  who  searches  the  hearts  and 
tries  the  reins  of  the  children  of  men.     (Great  applause.)  " 

At  the  Birmingham  General  Conference  the 
Bishops  presented  to  Bishop  Wilson  a  written  re- 
quest, signed  by  all  of  them,  for  him  to  preach  the 
sermon  at  the  ordination  of  the  new  Bishops. 
Though  he  made  the  point  that  it  was  not  his  turn, 
he  finally  yielded  to  the  persuasions  of  his  colleagues. 
At  the  Asheville  General  Conference,  four  years 
later,  the  same  honor  was  thrust  upon  him,  making 
three  times  he  had  preached  the  ordination  sermon, 
something  unprecedented  in  Southern  Methodism. 
This  is  one  of  the  many  evidences  of  the  high  estimate 
that  was  placed  upon  his  preaching  abiUty  by  his 
fellows  in  the  College  of  Bishops. 

He  was  retired  from  active  service  by  the  General 
Conference  at  Oklahoma  City  in  1914,  at  the  ad- 
vanced age  of  eighty,  but  his  counsel  and  services 
w^ere  eagerly  sought  by  his  colleagues  and  other 
brethren  to  the  time  of  his  death.  His  sermons, 
speeches  and  presence  exerted  a  commanding  in- 
fluence wherever  he  went.  The  people  were  only 
too  willing  to  listen  to  and  be  influenced  by  a  man 

107 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


who  had  placed  his  great  talents  at  the  disposal  o 
the  Church  all  the  years  of  his  life. 

Respecting  his  retirement  he  wrote  to  his  daugh- 
ter that  he  was  satisfied ;  that  he  had  always  brought 
everything  that  concerned  his  life  to  the  Lord,  and 
had  left  it  with  Him.  This  was  no  exception  and 
the  retirement  seemed  to  be  His  ordering.  He  ac- 
cepted it  as  coming  from  His  hand.  Furthermore, 
he  wrote  of  the  kindness  and  generosity  with  which 
the  Church  had  uniformly  treated  him  and  expressed 
himself  as  not  having  deserved  such  consideration. 

His  farewell  address  to  the  General  Conference  is 
ranked  among  Methodist  classics.  When  the  hour 
for  the  adjournment  had  come.  Bishop  Hendrix 
called  upon  Bishop  Wilson,  who  spoke  as  follows: 

"It  is  my  last  message,  brethren,  and  it  is  perhaps 
appropriate,  and  you  will  not  blame  me,  at  least,  if  I  in- 
dulge in  a  few  personal  reflections.  It  is  something  more 
than  sixty-two  years  now  since  I  began  my  ministry.  I 
preached  my  first  sermon  on  the  28th  of  March,  1852.  It 
is  a  long  time  as  I  look  back  upon  it.  Almost  two  genera- 
tions have  passed  away.  The  men  whom  I  knew  as 
leaders  in  the  Church  and  men  who  made  Methodism  what 
it  is  are  all  gone  to  their  reward.  Sometimes  I  feel  as  if  I 
had  fallen  into  an  entirely  different  sphere  of  being.  The 
changes  have  been  great.  You  perhaps  have  not  noted 
them  as  carefully  and  minutely  as  those  of  us  who  have 
come  to  be  watchful  of  the  drift  and  movement  of  things. 
Through  it  all  I  have  tried,  first  of  all,  to  maintain  the 
character  of  a  Methodist  preacher,  than  which  there  is 
none  higher  on  earth.  I  have  sought  to  preach  the  gospel, 
only  the  gospel.  I  have  not  cared  for  side  issues  that 
have  been  raised.  I  have  paid  but  little  attention  to  the 
opposition  of  the  world.  I  have  drawn  my  lessons  and  my 
inspiration  from  the  Word  of  God,  and  from  that  only. 
I  dare  to  say  that  I  have  not  suffered  the  manifold  vagaries 

108 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


of  the  neophytes  of  our  time,  of  various  eccentric  writers, 
to  influence  me  to  any  extent.  I  have  not  been  unmindful 
of  them  as  perils  to  the  Church  or  dangers  to  which  we 
were  seriously  exposed,  but  I  have  never  feared  for  the 
issue  and  never  doubted  for  a  moment  that  the  final 
result  would  be  the  triumph,  the  glorious  triumph,  of  the 
kingdom  of  God,  and  especially  of  that  kingdom  of  God 
as  it  has  been  manifested  in  our  own  much-blessed  Church. 
"When  I  look  at  our  own  Church  and  its  history  I  am 
surprised,  and  yet  I  can  say  that  my  personal  history  has 
some  sort  of  comparison  with  it.  In  my  earlier  days  I  had 
to  go  through  great  difficulties — was  often  worn  and 
weary,  broken  in  health,  and  in  the  midst  of  conditions  that 
threatened  my  very  life.  Yet  I  staggered  on  and  stumbled 
and  again  arose  and  went  the  way  the  old  fathers  went, 
and,  I  may  say  it  frankly  and  honestly,  without  fear.  I 
have  gone  through  every  experience  of  the  Methodist 
preacher  from  the  top  to  the  bottom,  as  a  preacher  on  the 
circuit  and  then  to  the  station  and  to  the  presiding  elder's 
district,  until  you  put  me  where  I  have  had  the  heaviest 
burden  of  my  life.  Nobody  can  know  what  I  have  had  to 
bear  in  the  last  sixteen  years.  Thank  God  that  I  have 
come  through  it  all  so  surely,  peacefiilly,  and  without  any 
disturbance  of  my  faith  and  without  any  loss  to  the 
Church! 

"Our  Church  had  to  go  through  the  calamity  of  the 
war  broken,  and  when  the  war  ceased  there  seemed  but 
little  prospect  of  its  survival.  Every  force  in  the  land  was 
against  it ;  and  yet  it  gathered  itself  up  in  the  strength  of 
its  great  Leader  and  Head,  determined  to  pursue  its  course 
unflinchingly  in  spite  of  appearances  and  evil  conditions. 
And  it  grew  steadily  until  in  its  course  it  outstripped  every 
form  of  Methodism  in  its  gain,  its  conquests  over  sin  and 
the  world,  on  the  continent.  It  was  a  surprise  to  me,  I 
confess,  that  at  the  Ecumenical  Conference  at  Toronto, 
when  the  reports  of  the  gains  of  Methodism  on  the  con- 
tinent in  all  its  branches  were  spread  out,  it  was  seen  that 
our  own  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  South,  had  made 
more  than  half  of  all  the  gains  that  the  Church  had  made. 
We  may  well  congratulate  ourselves  upon  such  reward  of 

109 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


fidelity  to  the  Church  and  to  God.  Only  God  could  have 
brought  us  through  with  such  measures  of  gain.  I  thank 
God  for  it  all. 

"I  am  perfectly  content  with  what  you  have  done.  I 
lay  down  the  burden  that  you  laid  upon  me  with  a  sense  of 
relief  that  no  man  can  know.  I  would  gladly  have  labored 
on  had  you  said  so.  I  might  have  done  something  more; 
but  God  has  willed  it  otheruase,  and  it  has  been  my  course 
all  the  way  through  to  leave  everything  in  the  hands  of 
God.  And  I  am  sure  that  it  is  His  will  that  I  should  be 
where  you  have  said  that  I  must  remain.  I  thank  you 
for  all  the  courtesy  and  kindness  that  }^ou  have  shown  me 
through  all  these  years.  I  have  dealt  with  you,  in  the 
Annual  Conferences  and  here,  with  perfect  fairness  and 
honesty.  I  can  say  before  my  God  that  I  have  suffered  no 
partiality  or  prejudice  or  personal  consideration  to  in- 
fluence at  any  point  or  to  any  extent  my  administration 
anywhere.  I  have  always,  at  all  times,  laid  all  matters 
concerning  the  Church  and  myself  before  God  and  left  it 
to  him  to  decide  the  issue.  I  am  grateful  for  what  has 
come  out  of  it  all. 

"The  world  is  just  opening  up  before  you.  You  have 
no  conception  of  what  is  coming  within  the  next  few  years. 
One  who  reads  the  signs  of  the  times  and  carefully  con- 
siders the  movements  of  all  the  forces  in  earth  can  hardly 
fail  to  see  that  we  are  going  to  meet  the  most  tremendous 
issues  that  have  ever  confronted  the  Church,  and  that 
within  a  very  short  time.  Look  at  the  vast  combinations 
on  one  side  and  the  other.  The  Churches  are  getting  to- 
gether, consolidating  their  forces,  determining  the  issues 
of  all  their  joint  work.  The  combinations  on  the  other 
side,  the  secular  forces,  are  being  made  with  a  rapidity  and 
a  power  that  none  of  the  legislative  influences  of  earth  can 
control.  And  they  are  bound  to  clash.  That  clash  has 
begun,  in  fact,  and  it  will  become  more  intense  and  wide- 
spread as  the  3'ears  go  on.  And  they  will  compass  about 
the  cainp  of  the  saints,  I  have  no  doubt,  by  and  by,  and  we 
shall  find  it  necessary  to  rely  not  upon  our  organization  and 
not  upon  our  wise  legislation,  but  simply  and  solely  upon 
the  presence  and  power  of  the  Spirit  of  God  and  upon  the 

110 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


living  Word  of  God  as  He  shall  direct  its  use.  You  may 
depend  upon  that. 

"We  have  come  to  think  a  little  too  much,  I  fear,  at 
times,  of  our  elaborate  organizations.  We  have  many  of 
them.  There  is  hardly  a  department  of  the  Church  and 
ministry  and  religious  hfe  that  we  have  not  tried  to  put 
into  some  form  of  machinery,  and  ofttimes  the  machine  is 
so  perfect  that  the  man  is  lost  sight  of.  Such  perfect 
machiner}'  must  produce  results,  but  of  what  sort?  We 
may  gain  on  one  side,  and  by  neglect  of  things  that  make 
up  the  realities  of  life  we  may  lose  on  the  other.  We  must 
be  very  careful,  brethren,  and  not  let  our  notions  of  the 
methods  and  the  means  employed  set  aside  our  views  of 
what  the  means  were  intended  for  and  the  methods  ought 
to  lead  to.  We  must  be  careful  about  that.  Our  business, 
first  of  all,  is  to  save  men.  Remember  that.  I  do  not 
care  how  perfect  your  order  is.  There  are  magnificent 
organizations  in  this  country.  In  the  Churches,  too,  there 
are  organizations  so  perfect,  so  well  planned,  so  thoroughly 
equipped  with  everything  that  seems  needful  to  the  ac- 
complishment of  their  ends  that  the  world  itself  looks  upon 
them  admiringly  and  wonderingly;  yet,  after  all,  they  do 
not  reach  down  after  the  masses  of  the  people  and  save 
them.  They  are  dying  still,  growing  more  degraded  still, 
sinking  lower  still.  The  pressure  is  upon  them  as  hard  as 
ever.  And  the  more  largely  these  great  combinations 
continue  to  grow,  the  less  hope  there  is  for  the  lesser  and 
feebler  and  weaker  men.  Take  care  of  them.  Your 
Heavenly  Father,  who  looks  after  the  sparrow  that  falls, 
looks  after  the  least  of  them,  and  your  neglect  of  them  and 
disregard  of  them  while  you  are  furbishing  up  your  weapons 
and  perfecting  your  machinery  will  bring  upon  you  a  curse 
instead  of  a  blessing. 

"Be  careful,  I  say.  First  of  all,  save  men.  Save  them. 
Do  not  let  them  die,  whatever  may  become  of  your  various 
plans  and  schemes  of  every  sort.  I  don't  condemn  them, 
but  be  careful  that  they  do  not  supersede  the  great  pur- 
pose for  which  the  whole  Church  was  set  up  on  earth. 
The  Church  of  the  living  God,  which  He  purchased  with 
His  own  blood,  was  intended  to  be  simply  the  channel 

111 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


through  which  the  mighty  forces  of  His  love  and  truth  and 
power  should  come  down  upon  men  for  their  salvation. 
The  old  Church  of  the  catacombs,  the  Church  of  the 
martyrs,  the  Church  of  the  confessors — that  was  the 
Church  of  power.  They  had  none  of  your  associations  and 
none  of  your  organizations.  The  one  association  that  they 
had  was  the  Church,  the  Church  of  God,  alive,  alert, 
ready  to  act,  ready  to  die  for  Him  who  died  for  it.  And 
that  is  what  we  want  to-day.  We  want  a  Church  that  will 
stand  in  the  face  of  all  the  world  and  say:  'You  may 
destroy  every  building  we  have,  you  may  tear  down  all  our 
defences,  you  may  put  away  from  the  midst  of  us  every- 
thing that  we  count  precious  and  dear  to  us ;  but  you  can- 
not take  our  gospel  and  our  Christ  and  our  God  from  us, 
and  in  the  name  and  by  the  power  that  is  His,  and  by  this 
only,  we  will  conquer.  We  will  die  in  conquering  if  need 
be,  but  we  will  conquer  at  the  last. '  I  want  you  to  go  to 
your  homes  with  this  conviction  in  your  hearts.  Build  up 
all  the  waste  places.  Do  the  best  you  can  with  your  or- 
ganizations for  every  class  of  men.  But  don't  lose  your 
interest  in  the  gospel,  your  personal  right  to  save  men. 
You  laymen,  God  has  called  you,  as  much  as  He  has  called 
the  preachers  of  the  gospel,  to  administer  to  men  in  the 
highest  and  holiest  things,  to  save  them.  You  cannot 
talk  with  a  man  on  the  street,  in  your  business,  in  your 
homes  socially  without  influencing  him  one  way  or  the 
other.  You  make  an  impression,  good  or  evil.  You  help 
him  toward  God  or  the  other  way.  Be  careful,  I  say.  Let 
your  light  shine  so  that  all  men  may  see  it.  And  wherever 
you  are  and  whatever  you  are  doing,  in  your  business,  in 
your  courts,  in  your  legislative  halls,  in  your  social  as- 
semblies— whatever  you  are  doing,  let  Christ  be  first  and 
foremost  in  your  thought  and  purpose.  It  is  He  that  has 
laid  His  hand  upon  you  to  save  you  and  through  you  to 
save  those  about  you  and  those  far  off.  Take  care  that 
you  live  up  to  the  demand  of  God. 

"I  am  very  grateful  to  you.  I  can  never  express  the 
debt  I  owe  to  the  Church.  It  has  guarded  me.  It  has  cared 
for  me.  While  I  have  labored  for  it  and  suffered  for  it,  it 
has  been  tender  in  its  dealings  with  me.     It  has  made  me 

112 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


feel  as  though  it  regarded  me  as  some  precious  thing.  I 
want  you  to  have  that  same  care  for  my  brethren  who  fall 
into  the  same  line  of  work  behind  me.  I  love  them.  I 
shall  miss  their  fellowship.  We  have  been  one  in  heart. 
We  have  had  strong  divisions  sometimes;  but  we  have 
never  lost  the  heart  of  love  for  each  other,  and,  through 
God's  grace,  we  never  will.  We  may  differ  as  widely 
hereafter.  But  we  are  striving  together  for  the  faith  of  the 
gospel,  for  the  upbuilding  of  the  Church  of  God,  for  the 
redemption  of  the  world;  and  we  are  one  in  the  great 
purpose  of  God,  and  we  intend  to  remain  one.  It  will  be 
so  as  long  as  I  live,  and  I  pray  God  that  the  time  may 
never  come  when  we  shall  have  an  Episcopacy  that  is 
divided  in  heart.  I  do  not  care  what  their  differences  of 
opinion  may  be,  and  I  do  not  care  how  plainly  they  speak 
them  out.  But  one  in  heart  they  must  be,  or  the  Church 
will  be  divided.  Remember  that.  Pray  for  these  men. 
They  need  your  prayers.  Honor  them.  You  have  put 
them  in  their  high  position.  Don't  distrust  them  and 
treat  them  as  though  they  required  to  be  fettered  all  the 
time.  Give  them  all  the  freedom  that  the  high  place  in 
which  you  have  put  them  requires.  Let  them  do  the  work 
that  belongs  to  their  place,  with  their  eye  upon  God  and 
their  hands  in  God's  hand.  And  so  may  they  be  blessed  in 
their  personal  experience,  in  their  work,  and  in  the  results 
of  their  work  among  you  and  in  all  lands. 

"Methodism  is  world-wide  to-day — ^more  than  world- 
wide; it  has  reached  up  to  the  throne.  The  principalities, 
and  powers  in  heavenly  places  learn  the  manifold  wisdom 
of  God  through  it  as  much  as  through  any  other  Church  in 
all  the  earth.  It  is  a  great  thing.  See  that  you  keep  it 
great.  Don't  belittle  it.  Don't  speak  slightingly  of  your 
church.  It  may  be  a  homely  church  in  a  lonely  situation. 
It  may  be  out  in  the  woods.  It  may  be  a  log  cabin.  But 
it  is  the  church  of  the  living  God,  no  matter  where  you 
find  it.  And  it  is  worthy  of  your  uttermost  thought  and 
care  and  ought  to  be  treated  with  all  reverence  and  regarded 
as  sacred  because  it  is  God's.  God's  hand  is  upon  it. 
Care  for  it.  Lift  it  up.  Make  it  honorable  among  men 
by  its  purity  and  the  integrity  of  your  life  and  your  fidelity 

113 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


to  your  high  profession.  And  may  the  blessing  of  Al- 
mighty God  rest  upon  the  entire  Church  in  all  its  parts, 
in  all  places,  until  the  day  shall  come  when  He  shall  as- 
semble us  all  before  Himself  and  speak  to  us  one  by  one ! 
He  will  then  take  us  up  separately,  brethren,  for  ever}'  one 
of  us  shall  give  an  account  of  himself.  And  He  will  say  to 
each  one:  "Well  done,  well  done,  good  and  faithful 
servant."  I  would  rather  hear  that  voice  from  His  lips 
than  hear  the  choir  of  angels  sing  the  loftiest  song  that 
ever  pealed  through  the  skies  of  heaven.  Just  to  hear  that 
voice,  "Well  done!"  May  God  keep  you  and  guide  you 
and  guard  you !     A  word  of  prayer : 

"  O  Father,  great  God,  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
the  Maker  and  Ruler  of  all  things,  who  hast  given  Thy  Son 
to  be  Head  over  all  things  to  the  Church,  which  is  His 
body,  do  thou  mercifully  look  upon  these  Thy  servants. 
They  have  labored  here  from  day  to  day  in  their  effort  to 
find  the  right  thing  for  Thy  Church  to  do  and  to  make  the 
right  plans  upon  which  the  Church  shall  operate  in  its 
conflicts  with  sin  and  the  world.  Let  them  go  from  here 
with  the  consciousness  that  Thou  dost  approve  their  work. 
If  they  have  done  any  wrong,  pardon  them.  If  they  have 
mistaken  the  end,  forgive  their  error.  Let  it  be  that  Thy 
hand  shall  turn  to  good  all  the  evil,  if  there  be  any,  among 
all  their  doings.  And  may  the  work  be  wrought  with  such 
vigilance  and  care  in  years  to  come  as  that  in  the  ages  to 
come  God's  exceeding  kindness  toward  us  through  Christ 
Jesus  shall  be  clearly  seen !  Bless  us  in  our  homes.  Make 
our  families  ChristHke.  Fill  them  all  with  the  Spirit. 
Let  our  children  grow  up  in  the  faith  of  their  fathers,  the 
faith  of  the  apostles.  Let  them  grow  up  into  the  likeness 
of  the  Son  of  God.  And  may  the  generations  coming  on 
be  better  than  this,  purer,  truer,  more  devoted !  May  we 
not  lose  any  element  of  power  that  has  been  handed  down 
to  us  from  the  generations  behind  us,  but  rather  may  there 
be  accretions  until  we  shall  be  fully  furnished  for  every 
good  word  and  work  in  this  world !  God  hear  us  and  bless 
us,  for  Christ's  sake.     Amen. " 


114 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  Holy  Land  and  the  Orient. 

On  Bishop  Wilson's  first  Episcopal  visit  to  the 
Orient  in  1886-87,  he  was  accompanied  by  Rev. 
Collins  Denny,  who  afterwards  was  elected  to  the 
Episcopacy,  in  whose  father's  home  Bishop  Wilson 
had  for  years  been  a  welcome  and  an  honored  guest. 
An  affection  sprung  up  between  the  Bishop  and  his 
young  friend,  similar  to  that  of  Paul  and  Timothy, 
which  developed  and  ripened  through  all  the  years 
which  followed.  The  telegram  which  Bishop  Denny 
sent  Bishop  Wilson's  daughter  upon  learning  of  the 
death  of  her  father  reveals  a  love  for  his  aged  col- 
league "passing  the  love  of  women.  " 

The  Bishop  wrote  a  series  of  delightful  travel 
letters  to  Mrs.  Wilson  while  on  this  visit  in  which  he 
often  referred  in  affectionate  terms  to  his  traveling 
companion.  These  letters  are  well  worth  being  pre- 
served in  permanent  form  not  only  because  of  the 
graphic  and  picturesque  style  of  the  writer  enabling 
the  reader  easily  to  visualize  the  objects  described,  but 
because  of  his  full  and  accurate  information  respect- 
ing places  of  interest  which  have  changed  but  little 
since  his  visit,  as  the  conservative  East  is  not  re- 
markable for  progress.  Several  Palestine  letters  are 
given  in  full  with  the  exception  of  some  personal 
references,  and  generous  extracts  are  given  from  the 
others. 

In  a  letter  from  Delhi,  India,  January  16,  1887,  he 
spoke  of  preaching  in  Calcutta,  and  visiting  Benares, 
the    sacred    city    of    the    Hindus,    and    witnessing 

115 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


evidences  of  appalling  immoralities  practiced  under 
the  name  and  protection  of  religion.  It  is  not  sur- 
prising that  with  his  knowledge  of  the  low  moral 
state  and  the  need  of  the  heathen  that  his  whole 
nature  turned  to  the  great  work  of  missions,  and  that 
he  on  one  occasion  wrote  this  line  from  Japan  to  his 
wife: 

"My  interest  in  this  work  is  as  intense  as  it  ever  was. 
I  could  live  and  die  for  it.  Let  them  locate  me  as  a  mis- 
sionary Bishop  out  here  and  send  you  and  the  little  ones 
to  me,  and  I  shall  be  content  to  spend  the  rest  of  my  days 
here." 

This  is  what  he  says  in  the  Delhi  letter : 

"On  Tuesday  morning  I  preached  in  the  Wesleyan 
Church  in  Calcutta  to  a  congregation  of  four  or  five 
hundred.  The  annual  meeting  of  the  Wesleyan  Mission 
was  in  session  and  almost  all  the  missionaries  were  present. 
At  6:30  p.  m.  I  preached  again  in  the  M.  E.  Church,  Dr. 
Thobum's,  to  the  largest  congregation  I  have  ever  seen 
since  I  left  America.  There  were  at  least  fifteen  hundred 
people  present  ....  What  I  had  seen  of  heathen  de- 
filements prompted  me  to  preach  from  'Purge  me  with 
hyssop  and  I  shall  be  clean :  wash  me  and  I  shall  be  whiter 
than  snow. '  The  same  night  at  9  o'clock  we  took  the 
train  for  Benares,  passing  by  Serampore,  where  Carey  did 
his  work.  We  reached  Benares,  the  sacred  city  of  the 
Hindus,  about  4  p.  m.  on  Monday  ....  The  next 
morning  we  hired  a  carriage  and  went  before  breakfast  to 
the  river  Ganges,  the  sacred  river.  We  hired  a  boat  and 
were  rowed  up  and  down  the  stream  for  an  hour  and  a 
half.  This  gave  us  the  view  of  the  finest  buildings  in  the 
city,  which  in  their  palmy  state  must  have  made  a  very 
brilliant  and  imposing  appearance.  At  present  they  do 
not  answer  to  the  glowing  description  given  of  them  by 
some  travelers.  They  are  largely  gone  into  decay.  The 
gilding  is  rubbed  off  and  the  whiteness  is  soiled.  Some  of 
them — the    Mosque    of   Aurungzebe    for   instance — still 

116 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


retain  their  unbroken  proportions  and  their  architectural 
splendor  ....  The  most  interesting  sight  of  the  morning 
was  the  long  row  of  bathing  ghauts  or  landing  places  where 
the  people  come  to  bathe,  to  wash  their  clothes  and  to 
worship  the  river.  The  ghauts  are  broad,  massive  stone 
stairways  reaching  from  the  high  bluff  on  which  the  city- 
stands  down  to  the  river.  Most  of  them  have  a  good  deal 
of  architectural  decoration  about  them.  They  extend 
for  some  miles  up  and  down  the  river  and,  at  the  early 
hoiu-  when  we  saw  them,  they  were  crowded  with  men, 
women,  children  and  cows,  who  had  come,  or  been  brought, 
to  wash  in  the  sacred  water  and  offer  their  devotions  to 
the  river.  It  was  pitiful  to  see  them  kneeling  with 
clasped  hands  and  bowed  heads,  muttering  their  prayers 
to  the  filthy  stream.  After  breakfast,  we  took  our  car- 
riage again  and  went  to  see  the  principal  temples  and 
other  points  of  interest  in  the  city.  I  cannot  describe 
them.  They  are  too  many  and  would  require  too  minute 
details.  I  can  only  say  that  the  carved  work  on  some  of 
them  was  more  foully  disgusting  and  loathsome  than  I  had 
any  idea  of,  and  I  had  read  much  of  the  debasements  and 
defilements  of  idolatry.  What  is  worse  these  representa- 
tions are  but  too  true  exponents  of  the  life  and  practices 
of  the  people  who  worship  in  these  temples.  The  specu- 
lative discussions  of  the  ulterior  moral  and  spiritual 
significance  of  the  symbolism  of  idolatry  and  the  rose- 
water  sentimental  condoning  the  sin  and  crime  of  idola- 
trous systems  so  fashionable  with  some  classes  of  people  > 
are  the  sheerest  nonsense  in  face  of  the  facts  on  exhibition 
here.  Paul  was  literally  right  when  he  wrote  the  first 
chapter  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans.  The  pollutions  and 
degradation  of  idolatry  are  unspeakable.  The  sacred  city 
of  the  Hindus  is  indescribably  worse  than  any  community 
in  the  worst  and  most  lawless  sections  of  any  Christian 
country.  Yet  here  Hindus  in  multitudes  come  to  die  and 
believe  that  dying  here  they  have  direct  entrance  into 
their  heaven." 

Writing  from   Bombay,   India,   under  the   date 
January  26,  1887,  he  gave  a  description  of  his  visit  to 

117 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


the  "Towers  of  Silence"  of  that  city  and  the  revolt- 
ing use  to  which  they  are  put,  which  one  cannot  read 
without  an  uncanny  sensation: 

"Dr.  Stone  came  in  one  afternoon  to  take  me  to  his 
house  to  meet  the  ladies  of  the  M.  E.  Mission,  Dr.  Stevens 
and  wife  and  take  tiffin  and  then  to  go  to  the  'towers  of 
silence.'  I  had  just  taken  all  the  tiffin  I  wanted;  but  went 
with  him,  spent  a  pleasant  hour  with  the  ladies — American 
and  native — and  Dr.  Stevens,  and  then  we  drove  to  the 
towers.  These  are  Parsee  burying  places.  Burying  is 
not  an  appropriate  word.  They  do  not  bury.  There  are 
five  towers,  twenty-eight  feet  high  and  ninety  feet  in 
diameter.  The  lower  half  of  each  tower — that  is  fourteen 
feet  of  the  height — is  of  solid  masonry  with  a  well  in  the 
center  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  in  circumference.  The 
upper  half  is  only  an  inclosing  wall  a  couple  of  feet  thick, 
through  which  is  an  iron  door  opening  upon  the  top  of 
the  masonry  around  the  wall.  This  surface  is  terraced 
so  as  to  provide  for  the  deposit  of  dead  bodies  in  three 
rows,  the  lowest  next  the  well  for  infants,  the  next  above 
for  women,  the  third,  nearest  the  outer  wall,  for  men. 
There  is  a  walk  between  the  terrace  for  men  and  that  for 
women ;  and  another  between  the  women  and  the  children, 
going  around  the  circle  of  the  tower.  Along  these  walks 
the  carriers  of  the  dead  bear  the  bodies  until  they  reach 
the  place  of  deposit.  The  living,  except  these  carriers, 
are  not  permitted  to  come  within  thirty  paces  of  the  tower. 
The  dead  are  carried  into  the  tower,  stripped  entirely 
naked  and  laid  in  the  place  provided  and  the  carriers  re- 
tire and  lock  the  door.  The  tower  is  open  at  the  top ;  and 
in  five  minutes  the  vultures  have  eaten  up  the  dead  body. 
A  funeral  procession  preceded  us  as  we  went  up  to  the 
towers  and  we  had  to  wait  until  the  body  had  been  de- 
posited and  the  party  returned.  The  delay  was  not  ten 
minutes;  but  when  we  came  to  the  tower  the  gorged 
vultures  had  finished  their  task  and  were  sitting  close 
packed  on  the  wall  of  the  tower  waiting  for  their  next 
meal.     Nothing  was  left  of  the  dead  man  but  a  few  pieces 

118 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


of  bone  and  the  liquid  parts  that  ran  down  into  the  well. 
That  is  a  Parsee  funeral.  The  towers  stand  on  a  high  hill 
in  the  midst  of  the  most  populous  part  of  Bombay  and  are 
surrounded  by  highly  ornamental  grounds,  above  which 
clouds  of  vultures  hover  continually.  There  is  a  fine  view 
of  the  entire  city  of  Bombay  and  the  harbor  from  the 
eminence.  But  it  is  a  loathsome  place  with  all  its  beauty. 
Strong  efforts  have  been  made  to  compel  the  removal  of 
the  towers  from  the  city;  but  the  Parsees  are  very  rich  and 
influential  and  have  baffled  the  Christian  sentiment  and 
decency  of  Bombay  in  every  endeavor. " 

Concerning  Cairo,  Egypt,  which  on  account  of  its 
wonderful  climate  in  winter,  has  developed  into  a 
famous  resort  for  the  wealthy  during  that  season  of 
the  year,  he  wrote: 

"It  has  a  thousand  attractions — not  the  least  of  which 
is  the  vast  variety  of  real  life  to  be  seen  in  its  streets.  It  is 
a  cosmopolitan  city.  There  are  more  nationalities  rep- 
resented there  than  in  any  city  I  have  yet  seen.  I  read 
signs  over  stores  and  cafes  in  Hebrew,  Greek,  German, 
Italian,  Spanish  and  English  and  saw  others  in  Syrian, 
Arabic,  Coptic,  Turkish  and  other  languages.  The  various 
races  live  in  separate  quarters  bearing  their  names;  but 
mingle  freely  in  the  business  parts  of  the  town.  In  the 
older  parts  you  may  see  repeated  the  scenes  of  the  Arabian 
Nights — the  open  shops,  the  cross-legged  owners  waiting 
with  eastern  imperturbability  for  customers,  or  chaffering 
over  a  trade  and  calling  upon  the  voluble  crowd  gathered 
as  always  to  help  in  the  transaction,  the  noise,  the  con- 
fusion, the  donkeys,  camels — all.  It  would  not  be  difficult 
to  imagine,  after  standing  for  awhile  in  one  of  the  thorough- 
fares and  becoming  somewhat  identified  with  the  sur- 
roundings, that  the  Sultan  Haroun  and  his  vizier  Giaour, 
were  passing  by  taking  notes. " 

His  description  of  the  landing  at  the  dangerous 
port  of  Joppa  will  vividly  recall  the  experiences  of 
those  who  have  disembarked  at  this  rocky  harbor. 


119 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


The  coast  of  Palestine  is  known  as  one  of  the  most 
inhospitable  in  the  world.  George  Adam  Smith  in 
his  "Historical  Geography  of  the  Holy  Land"  says: 

"Thus  while  the  cruelty  of  many  another  wild  coast  is 
known  by  the  wrecks  of  ships,  the  Syrian  shore  south  of 
Carmel  is  strewn  with  the  fiercest  wreckage  of  harbours. 

"I  have  twice  sailed  along  this  coast  on  a  summer 
afternoon  with  the  western  sun  thoroughly  illuminating 
it,  and  I  remember  no  break  in  the  long  line  of  foam  where 
land  and  sea  met,  no  single  spot  where  the  land  gave  way 
and  welcomed  the  sea  to  itself.  On  both  occasions  the 
air  was  quiet,  yet  all  along  the  line  there  was  disturbance. 
It  seemed  as  if  the  land  was  everywhere  saying  to  the  sea : 
I  do  not  wish  you,  I  do  not  need  you.  And  this  echoes 
through  most  of  the  Old  Testament.  Here  the  sea 
spreads  before  us  for  spectacle,  for  symbol,  for  music,  for 
promise,  but  never  for  use — save  in  one  case,  when  a 
prophet  sought  it  as  an  escape  from  bis  God. " 

This  letter  dated  Jerusalem,  Palestine,  February 
27,  1887,  contains  a  thrilling  description  of  the  land- 
ing at  Joppa,  notes  the  places  of  historic  interest  of 
that  ancient  seaport,  describes  an  uncomfortable  jour- 
ney to  Jerusalem,  and  the  wonders  of  the  "Holy 
City." 

A  railroad  has  been  constructed  from  Joppa  to 
Jerusalem  since  the  Bishop  made  his  visit,  so  that  the 
journey  can  be  made  today  in  comparative  comfort. 

"Friday  morning  at  11,"  the  letter  reads,  "we  came 
to  Jaffa  and  found  the  sea  so  high  that  I  feared  we  could 
not  land.  The  Captain  of  the  steamer  shared  my  fear. 
After  half  an  hour,  in  answer  to  our  signal,  we  saw  some 
boats  put  out  from  shore  and  watched  and  waited  with 
some  anxiety  to  see  if  they  could  ride  the  waves.  They 
seemed  at  times  to  go  under;  but  after  all  came  safely  to 
the  ship's  side.  The  labor  then  was  to  get  into  them. 
The  steamer  and  the  boats  were  tossing  up  and  down  at 

120 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


a  furious  rate ;  and  no  little  address  was  required  to  make 
the  passage  from  one  to  the  other.  I  went  first.  Watch- 
ing carefully,  I  seized  the  moment  when  the  steamer  went 
lowest  and  the  boats  came  on  the  crest  of  the  wave  and 
dropped  on  my  feet  all  right.  Collins  made  a  narrow 
escape.  Caught  by  two  Arab  boatman  he  was  held  up- 
right as  he  came  down  into  the  boat;  but  just  as  he 
touched  the  boat  a  tremendous  sea  threw  it  up  against  the 
gangway.  Fortunately  one  of  the  men  holding  him 
stumbled  backwards  against  some  baggage  and  drew 
Collins  over  with  him.  But  for  that  accident  Collins 
would  most  certainly  have  been  crushed ;  and  I  do  not  see 
how  he  could  have  escaped  with  life.  It  was  a  very  nar- 
row escape ;  and  Collins  was  the  only  one  who  did  not  see 
it.  Before  we  left  the  ship  Mr.  Rollo  Floyd,  to  whom  we 
had  written  wishing  to  contract  with  him  for  our  passage 
through  Palestine,  came  to  us  and  took  charge  of  us  and 
our  luggage.  He  is  a  Maine  man,  looks  like  a  country 
farmer,  is  as  familiar  with  Palestine  as  you  are  with  the 
room  you  live  in,  knows  the  Bible  as  well,  can  give  books, 
chapters  and  verse  for  every  place  and  name  in  the 
country,  knows  its  profane  history  as  well  and  withal  is  a 
very  devout  Christian  man.  We  told  him  what  we 
wanted;  and  he  is  to  see  that  we  go  through.  It  will  cost 
us  about  seven  dollars  and  a  half  a  day,  which  includes 
dragoman,  horses,  tents,  provisions,  everything  needed 
for  the  trip. 

"The  port  of  Jaffa — Joppa — is  the  traditional  neigh-' 
borhood  of  Jonah's  expedition  in  the  whale.  We  saw  no 
whale.  The  rocks  just  off  shore  make  it  a  very  dangerous 
landing  place,  so  that  I  wondered  how  Hiram,  King  of 
Tyre,  could  land  there  the  timber  he  sent  to  Solomon  for 
the  temple.  Afterwards  I  was  shown  a  pond,  or  lake  half 
a  mile  inland  which  is  said  to  have  communicated  in 
Solomon's  time  with  the  sea  and  to  have  been  the  place 
where  Hiram's  vessels  were  unloaded.  Old  anchors  and 
ships  and  timbers  have  been  brought  up  from  the  bottom 
of  it  showing  that  it  had  once  been  an  anchorage  for  ves- 
sels. As  soon  as  we  got  on  our  land  legs,  we  started  out 
to  survey  Joppa.     We   took  another  look  at  the  sea 


121 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


through  whose  surf  and  dangerous  rocks  we  had  come — 
among  which,  I  forgot  to  say  above,  is  the  rock  to  which 
Andromeda  was  chained  to  be  devoured  of  the  monster 
and  from  which  she  was  delivered  by  Perseus  ....  and 
then  went  down  the  street  to  look  for  one  '  Simon,  whose 
surname  is  Peter.  He  lodgeth  with  one  Simon  the  tanner, 
whose  house  is  by  the  seaside. '  ....  We  found  the  house 
said  to  be  on  the  spot  where  Simon  lived  and  lineal  suc- 
cessor to  his  dwelling  place.  There  is  an  ancient  well  by 
it  which  has  been  in  use  for  a  tannery.  That  is  the  reason 
for  fixing  on  this  site,  there  being  no  other  within  the  city, 
by  the  seaside,  that  has  been  used  as  a  tannery.  We  went 
on  the  roof;  but  we  had  had  our  lunch  and  fell  into  no 
trance.  We  saw  the  spot  where  Peter  raised  Dorcas — so 
it  is  said.  There  is  a  pubHc  fountain  there  now.  Then 
we  went  up  to  the  mission  school  conducted  by  some 
ladies  of  the  Scotch  church,  had  a  pleasant  talk  with  them 
and  heard  the  girls  sing  in  Arabic  '  Over  There, '  and  one 
or  two  other  familiar  tunes;  and  ended  our  explorations 
for  the  day  with  a  visit  to  a  medical  mission  conducted  by 
half  a  dozen  ladies  of  the  English  Church.  They  were 
very  agreeable  and  showed  us  all  the  buildings  and  ar- 
rangements, new  and  very  thorough  and  with  the  finest 
situation  in  Jaffa,  overlooking  sea  and  land.  We  were  in 
the  portion  of  Dan  and  looked  out  over  the  plain  of  Sharon, 
beyond  to  the  sandy  hills  of  Philistia  and  still  farther  to 
the  mountains  of  Judea.  It  was  a  goodly  land  as  we  saw 
it.  Jaffa  agreeably  surprised  me.  It  is  very  imposing  in 
its  appearance  from  sea,  crowning  the  hill  that  risesup 
from  the  shore,  well  and  closely  built  and  very  attractive. 
Within  it  has  the  usual  features  of  an  eastern  city,  narrow, 
dirty,  ill-paved  streets;  houses  often  built  quite  across  so 
that  in  walking  the  streets  we  passed  under  them,  noisy 
crowded  bazaars,  ill-dressed,  dirty  people,  dogs,  etc.,  etc. 
The  foreign  part  of  it  is  neat  and  pleasant. 

"Yesterday  morning  we  started  early  for  Jerusalem 
and  had  a  cold,  wet,  stormy  ride — forty  miles.  It  would 
have  been  a  delightful  ride'on  a  fair  day.  We  passed  by 
many  places  of  scriptural  interest  and  historic.  Vine- 
yards and  olive  groves  the  first  part  of  the  way;  then  the 

122 


s  5; 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


plain  of  Sharon,  broad,  rich  and  beautiful,  but  no  roses; 
then  Ramleh,  the  traditional  Arimathca  (by  the  way,  the 
first  native  I  met  was  Joseph  of  Arimathea),  then,  Latrin, 
or  Latrone,  where  it  is  said,  the  penitent  thief  was  brought 
up;  from  the  tower  of  Ramleh  we  saw  Gezer,  which  Pha- 
raoh took  and  gave  to  his  daughter,  Solomon's  wife,  and 
Lydda,  where  Peter  was  when  they  sent  for  him  to  come 
to  Joppa  on  Dorcas's  account.  Then  we  passed  Am  was 
which,  if  the  Sinaitic  manuscript  is  right,  is  the  Emmaus  of 
the  New  Testament,  then  the  vale  of  Elah,  which,  it  is 
contended,  is  the  place  where  David  slew  Goliath  of  Oath. 
Then  we  came  to  the  narrow  mountain  pass  where  Judas 
Maccabaeus  with  his  handful  of  followers  so  terribly  de- 
feated the  Greeks.  Up  this  we  ascended,  by  many  a  place 
of  historic  interest,  until  at  5  P.  M.  we  came  to  the  Holy 
City.  Beautiful  for  situation,  the  joy  of  the  whole  land, 
is  Mount  Zion.  Our  hotel  looks  in  front  upon  the  valley 
of  the  Son  of  Hinnom ;  and  from  my  window,  in  the  rear, 
across  the  city  rises  the  Mount  of  Olives.  The  church  of 
the  Holy  Sepulchre  and  the  Mosque  of  Omar  are  in  sight; 
and  indeed  I  look  dov/n  upon  almost  all  the  city.  My 
cold  was  rather  aggravated  by  the  cold,  wet  ride  yesterday 
and  kept  me  in  the  house  this  morning.  This  afternoon  I 
followed  our  dragoman  and  went  to  a  religious  meeting  of 
an  American  colony  settled  here,  for  what  purpose  I  am 
unable  to  say.  They  say  that  they  were  directed  by  the 
Spirit  to  come.  But  they  are  not  missionaries — making 
no  effort  to  convert  the  people;  they  renounce  all  business, 
attending  only  to  personal  and  household  affairs;  and, 
while  living  in  community,  have  discarded  the  married 
relation.  They  claim  to  live  exclusively  by  faith.  They 
had  a  Bible  reading  about  Nebuchadnezzar.  Then  some 
comments  by  men  and  women,  all  being  on  the  same 
footing,  a  prayer  by  a  woman,  some  very  pleasant 
singing  and  the  doxolog>'.  I  remained  an  hour  after- 
wards talking  with  them  and  went  to  the  top  of  their 
house,  which  is  built  against  the  city  wall,  and  had  a 
perfect  view  of  the  entire  city  and  its  environs.  Then  we 
went  into  the  church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  to  see  'the 
place  where  the  Lord  lay. '     There  are  too  many  things  in 


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ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


this  same  enclosure — Adam's  tomb,  the  place  where 
Abraham  offered  Isaac,  Calvary,  the  Sepulchre  and  I 
know  not  how  many  others.  I  do  not  believe  in  any  of 
them.  The  church,  however,  is  well  worth  a  visit,  with 
its  manifold  arrangements  for  different  creeds,  Greek, 
Latin,  Armenian,  Coptic,  and  is  furnished  with  great  cost. 
I  want  to  see  it  lighted,  with  its  silver  and  golden  lamps 
and  hope  to  be  able  to  do  so  before  I  leave. 

"This  day,  the  28th,  I  have  wandered  about  Zion's 
Hill  and  Mt.  Moriah.  A  great  many  things  are  shown— 
very  few  verified.  The  city  is  a  great  mass  of  lying 
traditions  and  puerile  superstition.  It  is  painful  to  follow 
the  ways  marked  out  for  credulous  visitors  and  note  how 
the  blessed  facts  of  our  Gospel  have  been  perverted  to 
purposes  of  gain  and  sectarian  domination.  The  general 
outHnes  of  the  city  are  easily  traceable.  Mt.  Zion,  Mt. 
Moriah,  Mt.  Acra,  Bezetha,  the  four  quarters  of  the  city, 
are  known  beyond  dispute.  The  temple  was  on  Mt. 
Moriah  and  some  of  its  remains — especially  the  subter- 
ranean— are  unquestionable.  I  very  strongly  incline  to 
the  beHef  that  the  huge  rock  in  the  center  of  what  is 
erroneously  called  the  Mosque  of  Omar  was  the  altar  of 
burnt  offerings;  and  from  this  may  be  traced  the  general 
outlines  of  the  temple.  But  I  have  not  the  slightest  faith 
in  the  localities  designated  as  the  scenes  of  the  manifold 
occurrences  in  New  Testament  history.  I  cannot  name 
them  all ;  but  a  specimen,  or  two  will  serve  for  the  whole 
mass.  In  the  Mosque  of  El-Aksa  is  shown  a  print  in  a 
stone  said  to  be  that  of  the  foot  of  Jesus  when  He  stood  in 
the  temple  disputing — at  twelve  years  of  age — with  the 
doctors.  On  the  Via  Dolorosa  is  shown  in  a  wall  the  print 
of  His  hand  when  He  fell  under  the  weight  of  the  cross. 
The  houses  of  Caiaphas,  Annas,  Simon,  the  Cyrenian, 
Veronica,  Dives  are  to  be  seen  on  the  same  road.  Under 
the  Mosque  of  Omar  is  the  place  Solomon  and  David  were 
wont  to  pray.  And  many  such  like  traditions  they  hold. 
I  ^\nll  not  recount  them.  It  is  enough  for  me  that  the  Son 
of  God  lived,  walked  and  talked  with  men  within  these 
precincts  and  probably  trod  the  stairway — now  subter- 
ranean— upon  which  I  passed  today,  as  He  went  to  the 

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ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


temple.  The  wonderful  drama  of  old  Jewish  history  was 
enacted  here.  This  is  the  chosen  seat  of  the  exposition  of 
the  processes  of  the  providence  of  God.  There  is  very- 
much,  too,  of  interest  that  does  not  belong  to  Biblical  his- 
tory. The  Maccabees  and  the  Crusaders  have  left  their 
mark  here.  The  Mohammedans  have  recorded  their  name 
and  prowess  here.  Their  Mosques  are  almost  as  rich  in 
tradition  as  Christian  churches.  They  lay  claim  to  the 
inheritance  of  patriarchal  history  equally  with  the  Jews 
and  do  not  refuse  a  place  of  honor  to  Jesus  as  a  prophet  of 
the  one  God.  So  I  went  the  round  of  their  records  in  the 
Mosque  of  Omar,  the  Mosque  of  El-Aksa,  the  Church  of 
the  Holy  Sepulchre,  the  church  of  St.  Anna,  mother  of  the 
Virgin,  the  church  where  the  Son  of  God  was  said  to  have 
been  scourged  and  crowned  with  thorns,  and  saw  His  foot 
prints,  His  cradle,  His  prison,  etc.,  etc." 

His  second  letter  from  Palestine  was  written  from 
Jerusalem,  March  6,  1887,  and  records  his  journey  to 
Hebron  in  which,  it  is  said,  live  the  most  fanatical 
and  dangerous  Arabs  in  Palestine.  They  guard  with 
a  mad  devotion  the  Mosque-enclosed  tomb  of 
Abraham.  The  ride  to  Jericho  and  the  Dead  Sea 
was  not  without  its  perils  because  the  rocky  bridle 
path  they  had  to  travel  led  around  the  edges  of  cliffs 
and  other  dangerous  places.  In  1898  a  few  years 
after  the  Bishop  had  seen  Palestine  on  the  occasion  of 
the  visit  of  the  Emperor  of  Germany  to  Jerusalem  to 
attend  the  dedication  of  the  Church  of  the  Redeemer, 
the  Sultan  of  Turkey  built  a  splendid  roadway  from 
Jerusalem  to  the  Dead  Sea  by  way  of  Jericho  and 
also  another  from  Jerusalem  to  Nazareth  for  the 
convenience  and  comfort  of  that  royal  personage  who 
wished  to  make  a  pilgrimage  to  those  sacred  places. 
This  letter  reads : 

"I  am  still  sniffling  and  coughing  and  conclude  that  it 
is  better  for  me  to  stay  by  the  fire  and  write  to  you  than 

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ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


face  this  strong,  cold  March  wind  in  order  to  witness  the 
mass  at  the  church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre.  I  have  very 
little  inclination  to  be  a  witness  to  such  performances  and, 
however  splendid  and  imposing  they  may  be,  I  have  much 
more  of  Paul's  feeling  in  the  midst  of  the  magnificence  of 
Athenian  art — '  His  spirit  was  stirred  in  him  when  he  saw 
the  city  wholly  given  to  idolatry. '  There  is  no  English 
service  in  the  city  except  the  reading  for  the  first  Sunday 
in  Lent  at  the  Anglican  Church. 

"We  had  fine  weather  for  our  trip  to  Hebron,  and  the 
Dead  Sea,  which  we  made  according  to  our  programme. 
On  Tuesday  morning  we  started  on  very  good  horses, 
passed  within  sight  of  Bethlehem  and  through  the  wilder- 
ness of  Judea,  by  the  pool  of  Solomon,  from  which  he 
brought  water  to  Jerusalem,  stopping  to  lunch  in  the  open 
air,  under  the  shade  of  a  ledge  of  rocks,  in  which  a  series  of 
tombs  had  been  cut  in  ancient  time,  and  came  to  Hebron 
about  4  P.  M.  We  found  accommodations  at  a  Russian 
Convent  and,  after  disposing  there  of  our  chattels,  rode  on 
to  the  city,  about  a  mile  distant.  The  first  five  miles  of 
our  way  from  Jerusalem  took  us  over  an  excellent  road; 
but  from  that  on  we  had  only  rough  and  narrow  bridle 
paths  over  the  mountains,  rocky  and  steep,  and  were  com- 
pelled to  move  at  a  slow  pace.  In  Hebron  we  could  see 
but  little.  There  is  a  Mohammedan  Mosque  built  over 
the  reputed  cave  of  Machpelah,  where  Abraham  and 
Sarah,  Isaac  and  Jacob,  were  buried.  The  Mussulmans 
here  are  a  fanatical,  hostile  tribe,  ready  on  the  slightest 
provocation  to  attack  any  Christians  coming  that  way. 
We  could  only,  through  favor  of  the  old  Sheik,  look 
through  an  opening  in  the  wall  into  the  Cave  and,  as  it  was 
totally  dark  inside,  could  see  nothing.  By  a  special  firman 
from  the  Sultan  of  Turkey  the  Prince  of  Wales  was  ad- 
mitted into  the  Mosque  some  years  ago  and  took  Dean 
Stanley  with  him.  The  description  of  it  is  given  by 
Stanley  in  his  '  Sinai  and  Palestine '  which  you  can  read 
when  you  get  at  my  books  again.  The  city  itself  is  unlike 
all  other  cities  of  Palestine,  situated  in  a  valley  and  a  very 
fertile  one.  There  is  an  ancient  oak  at  the  Convent 
where  we  stayed  which  is  said  to  be  the  oak  of  Mamre, 


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ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


where  Abraham  sat  when  the  angels  came  to  him ;  or,  at 
least,  a  descendant  of  it,  on  the  same  spot. 

"Early  in  the  morning  we  retraced  our  steps  and  came 
to  Bethlehem,  where  we  looked  through  the  church  of  the 
Nativity,  which  contains  the  manger  in  which  the  Lord 
was  laid,  the  altar  on  which  the  wise  men  worshipped,  the 
tomb  of  the  Innocents  whom  Herod  slew,  and  many  other 
things  wanting  verification.  There  is  a  grotto  there  in 
which  Mary  is  said  to  have  nursed  her  son,  and,  having 
dropped  some  of  her  milk  on  the  rock,  gave  it  the  property 
of  imparting  to  mothers  whose  milk  fails  the  power  to 
nurse  their  children.  The  nuns  grind  the  rock  to  powder, 
put  some  of  it  into  small  cakes,  or  lozenges  and  sell  them. 
I  declined  to  purchase.  We  rode  through  the  fields  of 
Boaz  where  Ruth  gleaned  and  David  watched  and  guarded 
his  father's  flocks.  In  two  hours  we  came  to  Mar  Saba,  a 
convent  founded  by  St.  Sabas  in  the  fourth  centur>-,  where 
we  found  rest  for  the  night.  There  is  here  a  fine  old  libra- 
ry, in  which  Tischendorff  found  some  valuable  manu- 
scripts, but  from  which  the  ignorant  monks,  themselves 
unable  to  make  any  use  of  it,  exclude  everybody.  The 
convent  is  built  on  the  side  of  the  mountain  and  cannot  be 
seen  until  it  is  reached.  From  the  door  of  entrance  we 
had  to  descend  more  than  a  hundred  steps  to  reach  the 
great  chamber.  The  only  occupation  of  the  monks  seems 
to  be  the  performance  of  their  various  services,  to  which 
they  have  added  such  gardening  as  the  place  admits,  and 
feeding  the  wild  birds  of  the  surrounding  country.  The, 
birds  of  all  sorts  come  at  the  ringing  of  a  bell  at  certain 
hours  and  take  food  from  the  hands  of  the  monks.  The 
country  for  miles  in  every  direction  is  as  desolate  as  can 
well  be  conceived.  I  saw  no  habitation  of  man  on  the  way 
from  Bethlehem  to  Mar  Saba;  nor  from  Mar  Saba  to  the 
Dead  Sea  except  some  Bedouin  camps.  We  left  Mar 
Saba  at  daylight,  guarded  by  two  Bedouins,  one  on  horse- 
back, one  on  foot,  besides  our  dragoman,  and  by  10:30 
A.  M.  came  to  the  Dead  Sea.  The  road,  or  path,  for  it 
was  no  more,  lay  along  the  side  of  the  mountains,  with  only 
a  footing  of  twelve  or  fourteen  inches  wide  to  save  us  from 
a  sheer  descent  of  twelve  or  fifteen  hundred  feet.     It  was 

127 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


the  only  ride  I  have  had  since  I  left  home  on  which  I  felt 
thankful  that  you  were  not  with  me.  I  doubt  if  you 
could  have  made  it,  though  some  ladies  have  ridden  by 
this  way.  I  was  very  agreeably  disappointed  in  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  Dead  Sea.  It  lies  in  a  very  deep  basin, 
twelve  hundred  and  ninety  feet  below  sea  level,  washing 
the  base  of  the  mountains  of  Moab  on  the  east  side  and  the 
mountains  of  Judea  on  the  west.  It  reminded  me  some- 
what of  Lake  George.  The  tales  of  my  youth  concerning 
the  utter  deadness  of  all  the  surrounding  regions  were  not 
confirmed.  The  mountains  of  either  side,  though  rugged 
and  seamed,  had  much  of  verdure  on  them;  and  at  the 
head  of  the  Sea,  where  we  stopped,  the  low  brush  gave 
shelter  to  partridges  and  many  other  birds,  which  flew  out 
as  we  rode  along.  From  the  Dead  Sea  to  the  Jordan  we 
passed  over  a  tract  of  four  or  five  miles  of  salt  land, 
wholly  unproductive.  We  took  a  bath  in  the  salt  waters 
and  found  them  so  heavy  it  was  almost  impossible  to  get 
under  them.  I  folded  my  arms  and  lay  on  my  back  and 
called  for  a  pillow.  The  waters  were  very  irritating  to  the 
skin,  and  required  to  be  washed  off  with  fresh  water.  We 
had  some  with  us  and  I  used  it  as  soon  as  I  came  out. 
Denny  took  a  bath  in  the  Jordan  an  hour  aftenvards. 
I  did  not.  One  cold  bath  in  this  March  season  was 
enough  for  me,  though  it  was  much  warmer  in  the  basin  of 
the  Dead  Sea  than  it  is  here  in  Jerusalem.  There  is  nearly 
thirty-six  himdred  feet  difference  in  altitude,  Jerusalem 
being  twenty-three  hundred  feet  above  sea  level.  On  the 
banks  of  the  Jordan  we  met  a  party  of  ladies  from  Man^- 
land  and  Virginia  ....  The  place  where  we  stopped  and 
took  our  lunch  was  where  Joshua  led  Israel  over.  There 
can  be  very  little  doubt  as  to  this  locality.  It  is  the  only 
crossing  within  reach  of  Jericho,  and  leads  directly  to 
Gilgal,  where  Joshua  encamped  and  renewed  the  rite  of 
circumcision.  We  went  after  lunch  to  Jericho,  saw  the 
fountain — reputed — whose  waters  Elisha  healed  for  the 
benefit  of  the  city  and  lodged  that  night  in  another  Russian 
convent.  The  plain  of  Jericho  is  ver}^  beautiful  and  very 
fertile ;  but  I  saw  not  a  single  palm  tree  in  what  was  known 
as  the  "City  of  Palms."     Nor  did  I  see  a  sycamore — 


128 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


properly  S3^camine — such  as  Zaccheus  climbed  to  see  Jesus. 
The  site  of  Zaccheus'  house  was  shown — a  tower  now  built 
on  it.  In  the  morning  we  started  in  the  rain,  which  soon 
ceased,  on  the  way  to  Bethany.  The  wind  was  fierce  and 
our  horses  full  of  life  and  we  galloped  at  full  speed  a  great 
part  of  the  way  along  the  steep  mountain  paths.  At 
Bethany  we  encountered  a  severe  hail  storm,  but  never- 
theless visited  everything  of  interest — the  house  of  Mary 
and  Martha,  the  tomb  of  Lazarus — or  tombs,  for  there  are 
two;  his  first  from  which  he  was  raised,  and  his  second  and 
his  final  one — one  claimed  by  Christians,  one  by  Moham- 
medans— the  house  of  Simon  the  leper,  the  Mount  of 
Ascension  and  other  places  of  later  interest;  then  came 
down  the  Motmt  of  Olives  to  the  tomb  of  the  prophets  and 
paid  another  visit  to  Gethsemane,  and  came  in  a  driving 
hail  storm  back  to  Jerusalem.  This  last  afternoon  was 
the  only  unseasonable  period  we  had  during  our  trip  and 
we  considered  ourselves  fortunate  in  that  nothing  in  the 
uncertain  weather  of  March  has  interfered  with  any  of  our 
plans. " 

The  third  Palestine  letter  is  dated  Jenin,  March 
10,  1887.  Jenin  is  a  camping  place  familiar  to  all 
Palestinian  tourists.  This  letter  is  a  w^onderful 
description  of  the  sacred  places  of  Northern  Palestine, 
with  Scriptural  references  to  them.  There  are  two 
things  in  connection  with  these  letters  that  are 
marvelous  to  the  author  who  in  1913  covered  practi- 
cally the  same  ground  "With  Tent  and  Donkey." 
The  first  is  the  almost  inexhaustible  sources  of  in- 
information,  historical.  Biblical  and  scientific,  the 
Bishop  had  at  his  command,  and  the  second  is  the 
time  he  found  in  the  roughing  it  through  Palestine  to 
write  such  brilliant  and  informing  letters.  The 
reader  will  necessarily  get  an  intelhgent  and  just 
conception  of  that  land  which  on  account  of  its  hal- 

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ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


lowed  associations  will  always  hold  within  itself  a 
perennial  fascination  for  every  Christian  heart. 

"I  am  sojourning  in  tents,"  he  wrote  "as  my  father 
Abraham  did,  being  heir  with  him  to  the  same  promise. 
Our  outfit  looks  extensive  for  two  small  men.  There  are 
two  tents  with  their  furniture,  consisting  for  the  one  of  two 
bedsteads  with  their  mattresses  and  clothing,  a  table,  three 
camp  chairs,  and  a  couple  of  rugs;  for  the  other,  of  all 
needful  cooking  utensils,  and  sleeping  rugs  for  our  em- 
ployees. We  have  a  dragoman,  a  very  intelligent,  accom- 
modating and  good  tempered  young  Arab,  a  hostler,  whose 
business  it  is  to  be  at  hand  whenever  and  wherever  we 
stop,  to  look  after  our  horses,  himself  going  afoot — no  easy 
task  for  men  who  go  as  fast  as  we  and  will  see  everything 
within  reach,  and  four  mule  drivers.  Three  horses  and 
four  mules  make  up  our  live  stock.  We  pay  seven  dol- 
lars and  a  half  a  day  each  for  this  array,  which  also  includes 
our  provisions  and  backsheesh.  In  the  morning  our  first 
business  is  to  get  up  and  make  a  hasty  toilet.  Then  our 
breakfast  is  brought  in  and  before  we  are  fairly  through 
with  it  the  tent  is  taken  down.  By  eight  o'clock  we  are 
in  the  saddle.  We  stop  at  12 :30  or  1  P.  M.  for  lunch,  under 
a  tree,  against  a  rock,  in  a  house,  or  wherever  we  con- 
veniently can.  In  an  hour,  or  hour  and  a  half,  we  start 
again  and  ride  to  the  predetermined  end  of  our  day's 
journey.  We  left  Jerusalem  on  Tuesday  morning,  going 
first  to  Neby-Samwil— the  ancient  Mizpeh — passing  in 
sight  of  Gibeah  and  Ramah  ....  From  Mizpeh  we  had 
our  last  view  of  Jerusalem.  We  went  on  to  Biren,  ancient 
Beeroth,  to  lunch  in  a  Mohammedan  house,  which  for  a 
consideration  was  opened  to  us.  After  lunch  we  rode 
steadily  on  to  Sinjil,  a  place  of  no  special  importance,  where 
we  pitched  our  tents  for  the  night.  The  next  morning  we 
rode  to  Jacob's  well,  'near  the  parcel  of  ground  which  he 
gave  to  his  son  Joseph. '  The  well  is  still  there,  although 
the  masonry  which  covered  it  in  has,  for  the  most  part, 
fallen  in.  We  sat  and  lunched  very  near  where  our  Lord 
sat  while  the  disciples  went  away  into  the  city  to  buy  meat. 
A  few  hundred  feet  ofif  is  a  tomb  said  to  be  Joseph's, 


130 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Just  above  are,  on  the  left  hand  Alt.  Gerizim,  with  its  old 
altar  of  sacrifice,  now  a  Mohammedan  Mosque:  in  full 
view  on  the  right  hand,  Mt.  Ebal  ....  We  went  to  the 
Samaritan  synagogue  and  had  a  sight  of  what  I  suppose  is 
the  oldest  manuscript  of  the  Pentateuch  in  existence.  It 
dates  back  to  our  Lord's  time  ....  The  Rabbi  first 
brought  out  one  of  later  date;  but  I  told  him  I  must  see 
the  oldest.  He  consented  and  I  bought  his  likeness  with 
the  old  manuscript  in  his  hand  for  a  franc.  We  pitched 
our  tents  just  this  side  Nablous.  This  morning  we  went 
first  to  Samaria.  On  the  hill,  just  before  reaching  it,  we 
had  our  first  view  of  'snow-clad  Hermon, '  standing  out  in 
the  morning  sun  beyond  a  long  roll  of  mountains  and 
plains.  We  expect  to  encamp  on  its  side  one  night  next 
week.  We  halted  to  see  Samaria,  '  at  the  head  of  the  fat 
valleys,'  as  it  is,  indeed,  a  beautiful  situation,  hardly 
inferior  to  Jerusalem.  We  saw  where  Omri  built  his  ivory 
palace,  the  king's  gardens  and  the  colonnade  of  Herod's 
time.  Then  we  came  on  to  Jeba  and  lunched  in  a  beauti- 
ful olive  grove.  After  lunch  we  rode  to  Dothan,  where 
Joseph  sought  his  brethren  and  was  by  them  tlirown  into  a 
pit  and  then  sold  to  Egypt,  and  whose  sides  were  once 
covered  with  horses  of  fire  and  chariots  of  fire  in  defense  of 
Elisha  against  the  Syrians.  From  there  we  rode  to  Jenin, 
ancient  En-gannim,  or,  Fount  of  the  Gardens,  where  we  are 
encamped  in  the  edge  of  the  plains  of  Esdraelon.  Our 
whole  way  from  Jerusalem  has  been  across  mountains  and 
valleys,  a  rough,  rocky  ride,  in  many  places  very  steep.  I 
am  becoming  quite  accustomed  to  horseback.  The  soreness 
and  excessive  weariness  of  my  first  days  last  week,  going  to 
Hebron  and  the  Jordan,  have  passed  away  and  I  am  as 
much  at  home  in  the  saddle  as  in  my  younger  days.  I 
have  a  good  horse  and  our  dragoman  says  we  are  not 
travelers  but  hunters,  i.  e.  we  go  too  fast.  We  are  making 
the  most  of  our  opportunities.  The  jackals — Samson's 
foxes — have  been  howling  around  our  camp,  and  Denny 
has  gone  out  to  see  if  he  can  shoot  one  by  moonlight.  We 
saw  several  on  our  way  today ;  but  could  not  get  a  shot  at 
them. 


131 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


"Sunday,  March  13,  1887.     I  am  writing  in  the  open 
air,  sitting  in  the  shadow  of  my  tent.     The  sun  is  shining 
in  his  strength,  lending  a  Sabbath  glory  to  the  hills  and 
fields  and  olive  groves  that  lie  around  us.      The  spring- 
time is  come;  for  the  fig-tree  shows  a  tender  branch  and 
putteth  forth  leaves.     The  summer  is  nigh  in  this  land. 
We  left  Jenin  on  Thursday  morning,  crossing  the  plain  of 
Esdraelon  to  Shunem,  where  dwelt  the  woman  whose  son 
Elisha  raised;   through  the  fields  of  Naboth,  which  Ahab 
coveted,  to  Jezreel;  to  Nain,  where  Jesus  raised  the  son  of 
the  widow ;  by  Endor,  whose  witch  brought  up  Samuel  at 
Saul's  instance,  to  Mt.  Tabor,  on  whose  top,  after  as  steep 
and  difficult  ascent  as  I  ever  made  on  horseback,  we 
lunched.     To  our  right  hand,  as  we  rode  over  the  plain, 
were  the  mountains  of  Gilboa,  across  the  sloping  end  of 
which  we  passed,   and  in  front  of  us.   Little  Hermon, 
around  which  we  traveled.     All  these  villages  lie  on  small 
hills  projecting  out  from  the  mountain  ranges,  or  rising 
from  the  midst  of  the  plain  and,  at  a  little  distance,  look 
very  beautiful  in  the  bright  sunlight  in  the  midst  pf  the 
fresh  verdure  of  spring,  which  covers  the  plain  and  sides  of 
the  mountains.     Off  to  our  left  and  forward  lay  Mt. 
Carmel,  on  whose  top  we  could  see  the  church  standing 
where,  it  is  said,  Elijah  offered  his  sacrifice.     Mt.  Tabor 
gives  sight  of  a  wide  sweep  of  landscape,  Mt.  Hermon  on 
the  north,  the  mountains  of  Moab  and  Bashan,  north  and 
east  of  the  Jordan,  the  sea  of  Galilee,  to  the  northeast,  the 
Jordan  with  the  mountains  beyond,  to  the  east.  Little 
Hermon,  Gilboa,  the  plains  of  Esdraelon  and  Megiddo,  and 
the  hills  of  Ephraim  and  Judah,  on  the  south;  and  Carmel 
and  the  mountains  of  Galilee,  on  the  west.     Tabor  has  on 
it  the  ruins  of  an  old  Roman  castle  and  of  a  town  that  was 
four  miles  in  circuit,  which  seems  to  negative  the  idea  that 
it  was  the  scene  of  the  transfiguration.     It  was  by  no 
means  a  lonely  site  in  our  Lord's  time,  but  was  the  seat  of 
a  considerable  population.     Yet  the   Greek  and   Latin 
churches  have,  each,  a  convent  and  a  church  there,  claim- 
ing to  be  on  the  very  ground  where  he  was  transfigured. 
After  lunch  and  an  exploration  of  the  ruins,  we  descended 
the  mountain  and  made  our  way  across  the  mountains  of 

132 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Galilee  to  Nazareth,  where  we  found  our  tents  pitched  in 
a  valley  at  the  base  of  the  city,  commanding  an  upward 
view  of  the  entire  place  which  lies  on  the  sides  of  a  semi- 
circle of  hills  and  has  a  fresh  and  attractive  appearance. 
There  is  a  Latin  church  built  on  the  spot  where  it  is  said 
the  Nazarenes  would  have  thrown  Jesus  down;  and 
another  on  the  site,  it  is  said,  of  the  house  where  Joseph  and 
Mary  lived.  The  spot  is  shown  where  the  angel  appeared 
to  Mary.  Of  course,  it  assumes  that  Joseph  and  Mary 
were  living  in  the  same  house  before  their  marriage  and 
both  at  Nazareth,  which  assumptions  require  proof.  Yes- 
terday, leaving  our  tents  at  Nazareth,  we  rode  to 
Mt.  Carmel,  straight  across  the  plain  of  Esdraelon, 
after  leaving  the  hills  of  Nazareth.  The  weather  was 
delightful  and  we  made  the  distance  in  four  hours 
to  the  top  of  the  mountain.  We  had  from  there  an- 
other fine  view  of  the  plain  of  Esdraelon.  It  looks  like 
a  carpet,  laid  off  in  oblong  figures,  well  cultivated  and 
very  beautiful  in  its  variety  of  colors.  There  is  hardly  a 
tree  in  its  entire  extent,  which  is  due  to  the  fact  that  the 
Turkish  government  exacts  a  heavy  tax  for  every  tree. 
The  Mediterranean  Sea  lies  off  to  the  west  of  Carmel  and, 
on  the  east,  we  had  from  another  point  of  view,  the  same 
broad  and  variegated  landscape  that  we  had  seen  from 
Tabor.  The  country  is  picturesque  beyond  my  anticipa- 
tion and  is  in  better  condition  by  far  than  I  expected  to 
find  it.  The  valleys  are  almost  all  thoroughly  cultivated ; 
and  the  hill  sides  are  being  taken  up,  cleared  of  stones  and 
made  available.  It  is  an  immensely  fertile  land  and,  when 
God's  purpose  in  it  shall  be  fulfilled,  will  be  one  of  the 
richest,  for  its  extent,  and  most  beautiful  on  earth.  Here 
at  Nazareth  we  rest  on  the  Lord's  day  and  tomorrow  go  on 
to  Tiberias.  I  ought  to  say  that  Nazareth  is  a  Christian 
city,  that  is  to  say,  the  majority  of  its  population  belong 
to  the  Greek,  Latin  and  Protestant  churches.  What  a 
change  since  Nathaniel  asked  'Can  any  good  thing  come 
out  of  Nazareth? '  It  is  the  most  thriving  and  busy  look- 
ing place  I  have  seen  in  Palestine.  There  is  but  one  small 
Mohammedan  mosque  in  the  place. " 


133 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


This  letter  dated  Tuesday,  March  15,  is  the  last 
of  those  written  from  the  Holy  Land. 

"We  left  Nazareth  on  Monday  morning,  taking  our 
way  over  the  hills  of  Nazareth  northward.  Passing  Gath- 
Hepher,  the  birthplace  of  the  prophet  Jonah,  where,  also, 
his  tomb  is  shown,  we  came  to  Cana,  or  rather  one  of  the 
two  places  claiming  to  be  the  scene  of  the  Lord's  first 
miracle.  In  the  Greek  church  I  was  shown  two  of  the 
water  jars  which  He  had  filled  and  in  which  He  turned  the 
water  into  wine.  (?)  Thence  we  rode  to  Kum  Hattin 
said  to  be  the  Mt.  of  Beatitudes,  where  our  Lord  delivered 
the  Sermon  on  the  Mount.  There  is  no  certainty  that  it  is 
the  place ;  but  I  see  no  reason  why  it  may  not  be.  It  is  well 
situated  for  the  purpose,  a  central  point  for  the  multitudes 
to  gather  from  Nazareth,  Cana,  Tiberias,  Capernaum, 
Bethsaida,  etc. ;  and  its  sloping  sides  and  the  plain  below 
could  well  accommodate  the  throng  that  followed  Him. 
I  climbed  to  the  top  on  my  horse,  the  hardest  ascent  I  ever 
made  on  horseback,  worse  than  Tabor,  though  much  less 
of  it,  and  sat  down  where  I  thought  the  Master  might  have 
sat  and  imagined  the  whole  scene  before  me.  To  the 
northwest;  on  the  very  top  of  a  mountain,  in  full  view  is 
Safed,  the  '  city  set  upon  a  hill  that  cannot  be  hid. '  Mul- 
titudes of  birds  are  singing  in  the  bright  sunshine  all 
around,  while  the  flowers  of  the  field  in  this  spring  time 
cover  the  plain  and  sides  of  the  hill.  Stones  and  scorpions, 
also,  abound.  Off  to  the  east  lies  the  Sea  of  Galilee;  and 
mountains  are  on  ever}^  side.  Hermon  shows  its  snowy  top 
and  sides  far  off  to  the  northeast.  Nothing  seemed 
wanting  but  the  living  figures.  From  there  we  rode  down 
to  Tiberias,  a  large  part  of  which  is  still  in  ruins  from  the 
earthquake  of  1837.  It  seems  strange  that  there  is  no 
record  that  our  Lord  ever  entered  this  city.  We  hired  a 
boat  here  to  take  us  up  the  lake  to  the  mouth  of  the  Jordan, 
where  it  enters  the  sea  of  Galilee,  and  had  a  delightful  sail. 
The  sea  was  as  smooth  as  a  mirror ;  a  light  haze  was  upon 
the  mountains  around;  the  air  was  soft  and  spring-like. 
The  surface  of  the  sea  is  six  hundred  and  eighty-two  feet 
below  the  level  of  the  Mediterranean.     From  the  mouth  of 


134 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Jordan,  at  the  north  end  of  the  sea,  we  coasted  along  by 
Tell  Hum  by  many  thought  to  be  Capernaum — where  we 
found  masses  of  ruins  and  not  a  single  habitation.  Among 
the  heaps,  we  saw  the  remains  of  what  was  perhaps  a 
Christian  church,  mtich  of  the  material  of  which  dated  back 
further  than  the  Christian  period  and  may  have  belonged 
to  the  synagogue  which  the  centurion  built  for  the  Jews. 
Then  we  passed  by  what  is  supposed  to  be  Bethsaida, 
where  a  few  huts  alone  remain.  From  there  we  sailed  on 
to  our  camp  for  the  night  at  Khan-Minyeh,  which,  also,  is 
claimed  as  Capernaum.  There  is  nothing  there  to  show 
that  it  was  once  a  city.  Our  Lord's  woe  pronounced  upon 
Chorazin,  Bethsaida,  and  Capernaum  have  taken  full 
effect,  since  even  the  sites  of  the  two  last  are  uncertain,  and 
utter  desolation  reigns  over  and  around  all  three.  We  left 
our  camp  at  8  o'clock  this  morning  and  rode  slowly  over  a 
rough,  rocky  country,  leaving  the  ruined  site  of  Chorazin 
on  our  right  hand  and  passing  nothing  of  note  until  we 
came  to  the  waters  of  Merom,  near  where  Joshua  fought 
with  Jabin,  King  of  Canaan,  and  his  confederates,  and 
routed  them.  The  lake  is  now  called  Huleh  and  looks 
ver}^  attractive  at  a  little  distance;  but  it  is  almost  inac- 
cessible, being  surrounded  by  marshes  and  steep  cliffs. 
We  are  encamped  for  the  night  at  Ain-Balatha,  whose 
chief  and,  indeed,  only  attraction  is  a  full  flowing  spring  of 
bright,  clear  water.  Numbers  of  Bedouins  are  on  the 
plains  in  front  of  us  watching  their  cattle  and  the  steep, 
rocky  mountain  sides  are  immediately  behind  us.  The 
Bedouin  women  are  passing  continually  to  and  from  the 
spring,  with  water  jars  on  their  heads.  We  are  still 
wonderfully  blessed  in  the  weather.  Before  coming 
Cook's  agents  warned  us  that  we  would  be  flooded  with 
rain  and  find  the  roads  impracticable.  We  have  not  had 
a  drop  of  rain  since  leaving  Jerusalem. 

"March  18.  On  Wednesday  we  came  from  Ain- 
Balatha,  skirting  around  the  edge  of  the  marshy  ground 
that  lies  north  of  the  Waters  of  Merom  and  making  our 
way  over  very  rough  and  rocky  paths,  to  Banias — ancient 
Caesarea  Philippi.  We  stopped  to  lunch  under  some  huge 
trees  on  the  outskirts  of  the  city  of  Dan,  once  called  Laish, 


135 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


an  account  of  whose  capture  is  given  in  Judges.  Here  is 
one  of  the  main  sources  of  the  Jordan,  a  full  flowing  spring 
breaking  out  from  the  midst  of  the  hill  on  which  Dan  was 
situated  and  running  in  a  large  stream — the  Leddan,  I 
think  it  is  called — into  the  Jordan  a  short  distance  below. 
An  hour  after  lunch  we  were  at  Banias,  at  the  foot  of  Mt. 
Hermon.  The  main  source  of  the  Jordan  is  a  magnificent 
spring,  the  largest  I  ever  saw,  bursting  out  from  under  the 
solid  rock  that  forms  the  base  of  the  mountain,  through 
many  passages,  in  a  semi-circle  of  a  hundred  and  fifty  feet 
and  rushing  down  the  sides  of  the  hills  in  beautiful  cata- 
racts until  it  reaches  its  bed.  There  is  an  old  Roman 
castle  in  ruins  standing  on  an  isolated  eminence,  two 
thousand  feet,  I  suppose,  above  the  town.  The  ascent  is 
very  difficult;  and,  as  I  would  have  a  good  view  of  the 
whole  of  it  in  going  up  Mt.  Hermon  and  knew  very  well 
what  was  to  be  seen,  I  did  not  go  to  it  ...  .  Thursday 
morning  we  climbed  five  thousand  feet  over  one  of  the 
passes  of  Mt.  Hermon,  stopped  a  while  to  eat  some  snow, 
the  first  we  had  seen  for  more  than  a  year,  and  take  a  look 
at  the  Hauran,  the  land  of  the  Amorites,  stretching  away 
to  the  eastward  and  to  get  our  first  view  of  Damascus  in 
the  distance.  Then  we  came  slowly  down  the  mountain 
on  the  northern  side  and  encamped  for  the  night  at  Kefr 
Hauwar  by  the  side  of  one  of  the  branches  of  the  river 
Pharpar.  This  morning  we  started  at  da3dight,  passed 
over  a  succession  of  broad,  rocky  hills,  and  about  midday 
came  down  into  the  plain  of  Damascus.  By  two  o'clock 
we  were  in  our  hotel,  putting  an  end  to  our  tent  life  in 
Palestine  and  Syria. " 


136 


CHAPTER  IX. 
The  Bishop  As  a  Preacher. 

Bishop  Hendrix  has  said  that  Bishop  Wilson  was  a 
four-fold  man — a  profound  student,  a  great  preacher, 
a  wonderful  organizer  and  a  commanding  bishop. 
But  after  all  has  been  said  of  his  accurate  scholar- 
ship, his  organizing  genius,  his  administrative  ability, 
he  stands  out  preemdnently  as  a  preacher.  He  had 
none  of  the  studied  arts  of  the  orator,  nor  the  artificial 
ornamentation  of  the  rhetorician.  His  manner  in  the 
pulpit  was  quiet  and  his  delivery  calm  and  unim- 
passioned  except  when  he  rose  in  magnificent  flights 
of  oratory  with  a  compelling  sweep  and  range  of 
thought,  that  seemed  bounded  only  by  the  eternities, 
and  lifted  his  hearers  to  such  spiritual  heights  that 
through  heaven's  unfolding  portals  they  beheld 
visions  of  ineffable  things.  He  spoke  with  the 
authority  of  a  Hebrew  prophet,  with  the  dynamic 
force  of  a  Saint  Paul,  and  sometimes  with  the  rap- 
turous mysticism  and  seraphic  sweetness  of  a  saint , 
John.  As  a  forest  is  swayed  by  a  tempest,  he  swayed 
vast  assemblages  by  his  marvelous  expositions  of  the 
Scriptures  and  his  inescapable  applications  of  the 
truth. 

His  matchless  insight  into  the  meaning  of  God's 
word  and  his  power  of  organizing  and  marshalling  his 
thought  in  a  fashion  peculiar  to  himself  enabled  him 
to  present  the  truth  with  almost  irresistible  force. 
Some  one  has  said  that  his  chief  differentiation  was  in 
his  preaching,  that  he  was  so  unlike  other  men  and 

137 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


yet  so  free  from  the  extraordinary  as  to  be  inde- 
scribable; and  furthermore  he  had  never  known  any 
other  man  who  even  with  cold,  incisive  sentences,  in 
a  dispassionate  exordium  could  often  send  a  thrill 
through  all  the  avenues  of  the  being  of  his  hearers. 
Truly  as  a  preacher  he  baffled  all  classification. 

The  age  has  had  few  stronger  thinkers  or  abler 
Christian  philosophers  than  he.  He  dwelt  in  a  realm 
of  high  thinking  and  holy  living.  It  could  not  have 
been  otherwise  that  he  should  have  preached  from  a 
full  heart  and  mind. 

Bishop  Wilson  placed  the  largest  estimate  upon 
preaching  of  the  proper  sort,  and  throughout  his  life 
gave  the  full  strength  of  his  energies  not  simply  to 
preaching,  but  to  preaching  the  gospel;  and  this  may 
account  in  some  measure  for  his  phenomenal  power 
in  the  pulpit.  In  his  farewell  message  to  the  General 
Conference  of  1914,  speaking  of  his  ministry  of  more 
than  sixty  years,  he  said: 

"Through  it  all  I  have  tried,  first  of  all,  to  maintain 
the  character  of  a  Methodist  preacher,  than  which  there 
is  none  higher  on  earth.  I  have  sought  to  preach  the 
gospel,  only  the  gospel.  I  have  not  cared  for  side  issues 
that  have  been  raised.  I  have  paid  but  little  attention  to 
the  opposition  of  the  world.  I  have  had  implicit  faith 
in  the  power  of  the  truth  when  it  makes  its  appeal  to  the 
consciences  of  men  in  the  sight  of  God,  and  I  have  drawn 
my  lessons  and  inspirations  from  the  Word  of  God,  and 
from  that  only. " 

In  1901  he  was  a  delegate  to  the  Ecumenical  Con- 
ference which  met  in  London.  One  morning  an 
eminent  man  who  was  to  speak  on  "The  Influence  of 
Methodism  in  the  Promotion  of  International  Peace" 
failed  to  appear.      An  American  who  was  on  the 

138 


ST.  PAUL'S  M.  E.  CHURCH,  SOUTH.  BALTIMORE,  MD. 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


executive  committee  suggested  that  Bishop  Wilson 
take  his  place.  The  leaders  thought  it  impossible  that 
any  man,  without  a  moment's  notice,  could  speak  to 
and  hold  that  throng  from  all  nations  of  the  earth. 
But  he  captivated  his  listeners  in  a  fifteen-minute 
speech,  one  of  the  shortest  of  his  life. 

This  address  is  reproduced,  but  it  is  impossible  to 
reproduce  the  electrically  charged  atmosphere  of  the 
occasion,  the  subtle  influences  of  the  personality  of 
the  preacher  permeating  his  utterances  and  filling  the 
house,  and  the  spiritual  triumph  which  followed. 
Though  the  principles  he  emphasized  are  as  sound 
today  as  they  were  at  that  time,  without  any  of  the 
attending  circumstances,  no  conception  can  be 
obtained  of  the  power  of  this  deliverance.  The 
Bishop  spoke  as  follows : 

"I  shall  not  waste  any  time  making  apologies.  If  I 
say  anything  good,  it  is  my  own;  and  if  I  do  not,  charge  it 
to  the  original,  who  ought  to  be  here,  and  is  not. 

"The  question  itself  is  narrowed  down,  I  think,  to  a 
very  small  space.  A  simple  exhortation  of  the  Apostle 
will  show  the  place  that  we,  as  Methodists,  and  as  a 
Church  of  God,  occupy  in  relation  to  international  peace: 
'exhort,  therefore,  that,  first  of  all,  supplications,  prayers, 
intercessions,  and  giving  of  thanks,  be  made  for  all  men; 
for  kings,  and  for  all  that  are  in  authority;  that  we  may 
lead  a  quiet  and  peaceable  life  in  all  godliness  and  hon- 
esty ....  I  will,  therefore,  that  men  pray  everywhere, 
lifting  up  holy  hands,  without  wrath  and  doubting. '  My 
impression  is  that  the  secret  of  the  whole  matter  lies  there. 
We  may  organize  Peace  Conference  and  pass  peace  reso- 
lutions in  our  Conference,  and  express  ourselves  in  the 
newspapers,  and  all  that  sort  of  thing.  But  they  are  mere 
incidents,  and  if  they  be  not  sincere  and  genuine  expres- 
sions of  the  spirit  and  power  that  underlie  our  relations  to 

139 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


God  and  to  humanity,  they  are  nothing  more  than  the 
passing  breeze,  and  amount  to  nothing. 

"The  element  of  power  in  Methodism  has  always  been 
at  the  bottom.  We  have  laid  great  stress  upon  personal 
spiritual  life,  we  have  insisted  upon  vital  godliness.  We  have 
insisted  in  every  other  department  of  our  religious  life  that 
is  the  essential  thing,  and  nothing  is  available  for  use, 
or  effective  in  service,  without  that.  Is  it  not  so  also  in 
this  case?  We  do  manufacture  public  opinion,  but  we  do 
it  by  that  subtle,  invisible  process  which  works  within  the 
secret  chambers  of  human  souls,  and  through  the  agencies 
of  living  experience — Christian  life.  There  is  more  power 
to  accomplish  the  peace  of  the  world  in  our  own  rooms 
than  there  is  in  all  the  open  Conferences  that  can  be  held. 
The  men  that  move  the  world  are  the  men  that  keep  talk- 
ing with  God  day  by  day.  I  have  no  doubt  that  the 
multitude  of  these  saintly  women  who  have  influenced  so 
largely  the  modern  life  of  Christendom,  unobtrusively  and 
quietly,  have  done  more  to  bring  about  a  condition  of 
things  that  promises  peace  in  the  future  than  we  have  done 
with  our  more  open  demonstrations  and  more  active  ef- 
forts. 

"I  am  satisfied  that  at  the  bottom,  after  all,  we  have 
to  get  back  to  those  first  principles.  John  the  Baptist  and 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  preached  to  the  soldier,  and  gave 
them  directions  as  to  their  methods  of  life,  but  did  not  say 
a  word  about  wars,  or  the  causes  of  wars,  except  that  they 
would  be.  They  taught  us  nothing  as  to  the  reason  why 
wars  should  be  carried  on,  or  why  wars  should  cease. 
They  only  let  us  know  that  underlying  all  the  commotion, 
tumult,  disturbance,  passion  and  strife  of  this  world  there 
were  elements  at  work  which  in  time  would  cause  them  all 
to  subside  and  settle  down  into  permanent  and  final  com- 
posure and  rest.  It  is  to  these  elements  that  we  are  looking 
under  a  sort  of  chemical  process  that  we  cannot  see  or 
define ;  but  the  element  is  there  and  the  force  is  there — the 
vital  force.  When  Methodism  takes  its  true  place  in  re- 
lation to  the  nations  of  the  world  and  international  rela- 
tions, it  will  be  found  that  the  power  that  has  controlled 
and  influenced  and  directed  the  whole  course  of  events  was 


140 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


simply  the  individual  religious  life  of  the  great  body  of  the 
Church  of  God. 

"I  am  quite  satisfied  that  must  be  the  case.  We  have 
had  a  great  deal  of  effort  made  in  these  last  years  to  in- 
fluence legislation.  I  never  had  much  faith  in  it.  I  do 
not  look  to  law  to  promote  temperance,  or  almost  any- 
thing else  that  is  good.  I  have  never  been  satisfied  that 
methods  and  agencies  of  that  sort,  except  as  the  voluntary 
expression  of  an  uncontrollable  and  all-powerful  principle 
and  vital  element  within,  would  avail  anything.  You  may 
put  some  obstacles  out  of  the  way  and  bring  in  some  in- 
cidental agencies  that  may  smooth  things  over,  but,  after 
all,  that  which  will  work  the  result  will  be  the  conscious- 
ness that  God  is  at  work  within  men,  and  through  the 
whole  course  of  society  and  of  nations  too.  '  The  nations 
and  the  kingdoms ' — that  was  the  lesson  which  we  heard 
this  morning — 'shall  sei-ve  Him';  and  unless  they  come 
to  the  recognition  of  Him  we  shall  never  get  to  that  state 
of  civilization  and  that  position  in  relation  to  all  the  ele- 
ments of  a  highly  refined,  cultured,  and  pure  life  that  we 
are  seeking. 

"Our  Methodism  needs,  first  of  all,  cultivation  of  its 
spiritual  power  and  life — recourse  to  the  private  room 
more  than  anything  else,  ceaseless  daily  prayer  to  God, 
which  avails  more  than  aught  else  besides;  prayer  for 
kings,  and  for  all  that  are  in  authority,  with  a  distinct  view 
to  the  fact  that  we  may  lead  quiet  and  peaceable  lives. 
If  I  should  speak  for  an  hour,  I  do  not  know  that  I  could' 
say  anything  more  than  that.  I  hold  St.  Paul  to  be  a  first- 
class  authority,  and  I  am  very  well  satisfied  that  when  we 
get  outside  the  range — narrow  as  it  may  seem — of  the 
prescriptions  and  provisions  of  the  Gospel  and  the  New 
Testament,  we  shall  be  very  apt  to  go  astray.  All  the 
rest  of  it  is  mere  conjecture,  and  speculation,  and  effort, 
oftentimes  baseless,  of  our  human  reason  and  human 
energies;  but  when  we  get  to  that,  we  are  on  solid  ground. 
We  cannot  make  any  mistake  there. 

"What  Jesus  Christ  says  is  absolutely  certain.  What 
St.  Paul  says  we  take  upon  Divine  authority.  We  are 
sure  that  things  that  they  tell  us  to  do  are  exactly  the 


141 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


things  that  we  ought  to  do,  and  that  if  we  do  them,  the 
necessary  result  will  follow:  We  complain  that  we  have 
lived  so  long  since  Christ  spoke,  and  Paul  talked,  without 
having  achieved  the  result.  Well,  have  we  done  any- 
better  on  any  other  line?  Our  great  aim  has  been  right 
against  sin.  We  have  been  fighting  it  through  all  these 
centuries;  yet  it  is  about  us  every  day,  open,  barefaced, 
unashamed.  We  see  it,  and  we  scarcely  take  notice  of  it. 
We  simply  shrug  our  shoulders  if  it  is  a  little  more  pro- 
nounced than  usual,  and  turn  away  and  smile.  We  do 
not  feel  that  awful  horror  at  its  presence  which  took  the 
Psalmist  when  he  saw  people  violating  the  law.  So  it  is 
with  wars  and  tumults,  and  things  of  that  sort.  We  have 
to  get  rid  of  the  sin  first,  and  then  we  shall  get  rid  of  the 
wars.  Strike  at  that,  the  root  of  the  whole  business. 
Aim  at  the  very  fundamental  and  essential  evil  of  the 
matter,  and  when  you  have  that  out  of  the  way  you  will 
get  all  the  rest  out ;  for  Christ  came,  '  not  to  send  peace  on 
the  earth,  but  a  sword, '  until  the  sword  should  hew  down 
everything  that  stood  against  Him.  When  that  is  done, 
we  can  look  for  quietness  and  assurance  forever. " 

Wlien  it  was  announced  that  he  would  speak  at 
St.  James  Hall  a  few  evenings  later,  a  vast  throng  was 
present  and  all  eyes  were  turned  upon  the  American 
Bishop.  The  meeting  was  presided  over  by  the  Hon- 
orable R.  W.  Perks,  M.  P.  This  time  the  Bishop 
spoke  over  an  hour  on  "The  Moral  Unity  of  the 
English-Speaking  Peoples. "  When  he  had  finished, 
the  large  audience  rose  and  pressed  toward  the  plat- 
form to  bear  him  in  triumph  on  their  shoulders;  but 
with  his  accustomed  modesty,  he  would  have  none  of 
this.  It  was  pronounced  by  many  of  the  pulpit 
orators  present  as  the  greatest  missionary  sermon 
they  had  ever  heard,  for  his  theme  was  susceptible  of 
a  missionary  application  of  the  largest  dimensions. 

142 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


The  question  has  been  asked :  Did  Bishop  Wilson 
ever  make  what  men  call  a  failure?  Did  he  ever  fall 
below  his  standard  because  of  adverse  physical  con- 
ditions and  lack  of  mental  stimulus?  Rarely.  His 
mind  was  so  constituted  and  trained,  his  spirit  was 
so  well  poised,  and  his  faith  built  upon  such  im- 
pregnable foundations  that  he  was  not  usually  de- 
pressed by  unfavorable  environments.  He  felt  that 
preaching  was  a  matter  of  duty  and  privilege  and 
always  did  his  best. 

Once  at  a  District  Conference  where  he  had 
preached  and  had  charmed  and  inspired  the  people 
with  his  uplifting  utterances,  there  was  a  general 
desire  that  he  should  preach  again  on  the  closing 
night  of  the  Conference.  He  consented.  The  Church 
was  crowded  with  people  eager  to  hear  him.  The 
Bishop  rose,  announced  the  hymn,  and  afterwards  his 
text,  and  began  his  sermon,  but  had  difficulty  in 
proceeding.  After  speaking  for  five  or  six  minutes, 
he  grew  pale  and  sat  down.  He  had  been  seized  with 
an  attack  of  vertigo  which  detained  him  at  the  seat 
of  the  Conference  for  several  days  after  its  adjourn- 
ment. 

Dr.  S.  A.  Steel  has  given  an  account  of  a  time 
when  he  says  Bishop  Wilson  did  not  measure  up  to 
expectation.     He  writes: 

* '  I  was  with  him  at  a  District  Conference  once.  It  was 
in  August.  The  weather  was  hot,  close,  and  stifling. 
It  wilted  everything.  An  archangel's  plume  would  have 
drooped  in  such  an  atmosphere.  Bishop  Wilson  preached 
at  eleven  o'clock,  but  not  with  his  usual  sweep  and  power. 
The  people  went  away  disappointed.  Many  had  come  for 
miles  to  hear  the  great  preacher.  The  humid  atmosphere 
had  proved  too  much  for  him. " 

143 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


But  Dr.  Steel  had  to  preach  at  night.  Bishop 
Wilson  was  in  the  pulpit,  and  the  same  brand  of 
atmosphere  was  in  both  pulpit  and  pew.  Dr.  Steel 
describes  his  experience: 

"My  machine  would  not  work.  After  perhaps  fifteen 
minutes  of  useless  struggle  to  sta'*t  something,  I  stopped 
and  said:  ' Brethren,  I'm  in  the  brush.  I  know  it.  God 
knows  it.  I  expect  you  know  it.  But  one  other  thing  I 
know,  salvation  is  free,  hallelujah!'  Some  brother 
shouted  out  'Amen,'  then  another  said  'Hallelujah,'  and 
others  joined  in  shouting  'Amen. '  It  started  a  whirlwind 
and  we  broke  up  with  a  grand  '  old-time  rehgion '  meeting. 
Some  time  after  I  met  Bishop  Wilson.  He  greeted  me 
cordially,  and  said,  'I  haven't  seen  you  since  you  were  in 

the  brush  at District  Conference.'     'Yes,' 

I  replied,  'if  I  remember  aright,  you  were  "in  the  brush, " 
too.  I  got  out  and  you  didn't.'  'WeU, '  he  said,  'you 
hollered  your  way  out. '  He  sometimes  failed;  but  that 
seldom  happened,  and  even  his  failures  were  beyond  the 
bestof  mostof  us. " 

Dr.  Steel  adds:  "I  have  often  wondered  how  our 
Bishops  preach  as  well  as  they  do  at  an  Annual  Conference, 
when  from  Wednesday  to  Saturday  they  are  engaged  with 
the  business  of  the  session,  often  involved  in  much  anxiety 
about  the  appointments  of  the  preachers,  and  pressed 
with  a  hundred  details.  But  if  these  things  ever  got  in 
Bishop  Wilson's  way,  he  never  showed  any  trace  of  it  in 
preaching.  And  when  he  swung  loose,  it  was  good  to  be 
there.  He  was  slow  getting  started,  like  a  big  ocean  liner. 
But  once  in  the  channel,  my,  my,  how  majestically  he 
moved!  You  did  not  have  the  dazzling  imagination  of 
Munsey;  you  missed  the  polished  periods  of  Galloway; 
there  was  none  of  the  emotional  eloquence  of  Kavanaugh, 
or  Marvin's  rapturous  flights.  But  you  were  lifted  by  a 
tidal  wave  of  spiritual  power  and  borne  upward  and  on- 
ward until  heaven  seemed  to  be  all  around  you,  and  the 
Delectable  Mountains  and  the  Land  of  Beulah  were  in  ivll 
view." 

144 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


The  question  can  with  better  grace  be  asked, 
"Has  the  Church  ever  produced  any  other  man  who 
has  preached  a  larger  number  of  great  sermons  or 
whose  preaching  has  been  more  uniformly  great?" 

Has  it  ever  produced  any  other  man  who  was 
such  a  masterly  interpreter  of  the  mind,  and  such  a 
luminous  expositor  of  the  Epistles  of  Saint  Paul? 
In  this  field  he  was  almost  peerless.  His  expositions 
were  so  clear,  so  profound,  so  inspiring  and  convinc- 
ing, that  many  have  regarded  him  as  the  mightiest 
expository  preacher  of  the  world.  Bishop  Hoss  says 
of  him  in  this  connection : 

"It  is  safe  to  say  that  no  Methodist  minister  has  ever 
been  more  thoroughly  saturated  with  the  Pauline  Epistles 
than  Bishop  A.  W.  Wilson.  To  use  the  language  of  Lord 
Bacon,  he  has  literally  'chewed  them  inwardly  and  di- 
gested them.'  They  have  been  his  meditation  day  and 
night  for  more  than  fifty  years.  Whenever  he  spoke  con- 
cerning them,  it  is  with  the  authority  of  a  fxill  and  pene- 
trating knowledge. " 

But,  as  Bishop  Hoss  so  well  says,  he  did  not 
confine  his  thinking  to  Paul : 

"Nearly  everybody  that  has  written  of  him  has  re- 
ferred to  the  Pauline  tone  of  his  preaching,  and  justly  so. 
But  this  does  not  mean  that  he  was  shut  up  to  Paul.  He 
literally  reveled  in  the  Gospels,  and  found  immense  satis- 
faction in  the  great  passages  of  the  Old  Testament.  Many 
have  referred  to  his  familiarity  with  the  Greek  Testament. 
In  this  respect,  we  have  had  no  man  in  my  day,  with  the 
possible  exception  of  Dr.  Gross  Alexander,  who  began  to 
be  his  equal.  In  his  prime,  he  was  also  very  fond  of  the 
Hebrew  Psalter. 

"More  than  any  man  I  have  ever  kno\\Ti  he  resembled 
an  old  Hebrew  prophet.  In  his  preaching  he  was  never  a 
logic  chopper,  laying  down  premises  and  drawing  painfully 

145 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


a  narrow  conclusion,  but  he  always  spoke  with  authority 
as  a  man  who  had  heard  the  Word  of  the  Lord  and  felt  that 
he  must  deliver  it.  Whether  he  made  this  impression  upon 
others  to  as  great  an  extent  as  he  did  upon  me  I  cannot 
tell,  but  I  am  sure  that  I  never  listened  to  a  man  in  my 
life  whose  utterances  seemed  to  come  more  straight  from 
an  intuition  of  the  eternal  truth." 

The  author  is  indebted  to  Bishop  Hoss  for  an  in- 
cident concerning  a  sermon  that  Bishop  Wilson 
preached  in  the  far  South  and  that  had  a  marvelous 
effect  on  his  hearers.  This  is  the  story  as  Bishop  Hoss 
tells  it : 

"I  suppose,  however,  in  his  entire  career  he  was  never 
greater  than  in  a  Thanksgiving  sennon  which  he  preached 
before  the  North  Texas  Conference  at  Wichita  Falls. 
Dr.  J.  W.  Hill,  who  tells  the  story  so  admirably,  once  gave 
me  an  account  of  it.  He  went  to  Church  that  day  with 
Judge  E.  B.  Perkins.  The  house  was  crowded,  and  as  the 
services  progressed,  a  deepening  sense  of  awe  fell  upon  the 
audience,  so  that  when  the  benediction  was  pronounced, 
nobody  moved.  After  a  few  minutes  of  silence,  however, 
Hill  said  to  Judge  Perkins ;     '  It's  time  to  go,  isn't  it  ? ' 

"'No,'  replied  the  Judge,  'Please  let  me  alone.  Hill, 
I  haven't  lit  yet. ' 

"After  a  pause,  he  added:  'Hill,  I  used  to  think  that 
you  and  J.  W.  Clark  were  great  preachers,  but  I  was  alto- 
gether in  error  about  that.  You  can't  begin  to  preach; 
you  can't  even  take  a  text.  " 

On  the  occasion  of  his  eightieth  birthday,  Bishop 
Candler  wrote  this  estimate  of  him  as  a  preacher: 

' '  In  the  English-speaking  nations  are  found  the  greatest 
living  preachers,  and  after  hearing  all  of  the  greatest 
among  them,  I  sincerely  believe  Bishop  Alpheus  W.  Wilson 
is  greater  than  any  of  them.  He  expounds  the  Scripture 
with  a  clearness,  power,  and  authority  such  ais  no  other 
preacher  whom  I  hear  can  equal.     He  is  a  great  believer, 

146 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


and  preaches  with  strength  because  he  believes  with 
strength. " 

Bishop  Denny  on  the  same  occasion  said: 

"  More  than  anything  else  Bishop  Wilson  is  a  preacher. 
He  was  divinely  called  to  preach  the  gospel,  and  to  him  to 
proclaim  the  message  of  his  Lord  has  always  been  a  solemn 
and  a  happy  privilege.  At  times  the  effect  of  his  sermons 
is  overwhelming,  and  his  audiences  disperse  knowing  that 
they  have  heard  a  man  of  rare  gifts,  great  intellect,  and 
spiritual  power. " 

Later  Bishop  Denny  wrote: 

"Perhaps  no  man  in  Methodism  has  been  so  unani- 
mously acclaimed  as  the  greatest  preacher  ever  raised  up 
among  us.  He  was  a  careful  and  constant  student  of  the 
sacred  Scriptures  in  their  original  tongues,  and  he  also 
read  and  loved  his  English  Bible.  He  thought  deeply  and 
constantly  of  the  truth  God  has  revealed  to  men.  He  dug 
deeply,  patiently,  persistently  into  its  treasures.  He 
made  Paiil  his  very  own  and  joyed  in  his  fellowship  in 
Christ  in  company  with  the  master  apostle;  not  that  he 
neglected  or  disparaged  other  prophets  and  apostles,  for 
this  he  never  did,  but  that  he  advanced  far  beyond  his 
brethren  in  his  grasp  of  Pauline  theology  and  in  sympathy 
with  the  truth  the  apostle  to  the  Gentiles  was  chosen  to 
teach.  He  was  given  to  prayer,  ejaculatory  prayer,  much 
prayer,  and  more  and  more  prayer.  He  loved  prayer,  yet 
was  free  from  ostentation  in  that  holy  exercise,  as  in 
everything  else  he  did. 

' '  His  preaching  was  marked  by  the  dominant  note  of 
certitude  and  authority,  and  he  eschewed  the  matters  of 
probability.  His  Lord  had  spoken  in  his  word  and  also 
in  his  own  heart,  and  he  spoke  out  what  had  come  to  him 
from  the  heavens.  Not  only  was  his  preaching  marked  by 
this  dominant  and  persistent  note,  but  also  by  constant 
bursts  of  originality,  by  the  steady  flame  of  genius,  by 
rare  fertility  of  suggcstiveness,  by  amazingly  wide  reaches 
of  thought,  and  by  unflagging  devotion  to  his  Lord.      No 

147 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


part  of  his  work  appealed  to  him  so  strongly,  and  in  none 
did  he  so  greatly  rejoice  and  exercise  himself  more  con- 
stantly than  in  preaching  with  power  the  blessed  gospel 
of  the  glorious  God.  He  believed  that  a  dispensation  of 
the  gospel  was  committed  to  him,  and  throughout  the 
world  the  multitudes  of  people  who  heard  him  for  more 
than  sixty-five  years  also  believed  that  he  was  sent  of 
God. " 

Rev.  F.  J.  Prettyman,  D.  D.,  Chaplain  of  the 
United  States  Senate,  and  former  pastor  of  the  family 
of  Bishop  Wilson,  gave  this  estimate  of  his  preaching 
before  the  Baltimore  Conference: 

"We  may  narrowly  escape  being  presumptuous  to 
mention  the  great  constructive  lines  which  were  especially 
characteristic  of  his  preaching.  Some  of  these  were :  The 
essential  unity  of  the  Old  and  New  Testament  in  the  revel- 
ation of  the  will  and  purpose  of  God;  the  divine  witness 
which  is  alone  sufficient  to  attest  a  divine  fact;  the  self- 
attesting  power  of  revealed  truth;  the  essential  deity  of 
Christ ;  who  is  the  image  of  the  invisible  God ;  the  fact  and 
quality  of  Christ's  personality  as  the  value  and  merit  of 
His  work  of  atonement;  the  direct  spiritual  illumina- 
tion of  Paul  which  qualified  him  for  the  theological  leader- 
ship of  the  church  in  all  ages ;  the  universal  function  of  the 
church  in  transforming  the  world  by  the  word  of  His 
truth;  the  absolute  freedom  of  humanity  in  Jesus  Christ. 
These  at  least  indicate  the  general  sphere  of  his  preaching. 
With  a  voice  of  commanding  quality  of  tone,  and  a  pre- 
sence of  prophetic  mold  he  delivered  his  message  to  a 
world  whose  only  problem  is  sin  and  whose  only  Savior  is 
Jesus  Christ  the  Lord.  " 

Hon.  Josephus  Daniels,  Secretary^  of  the  Navy, 
wrote  several  years  ago  of  the  effect  one  of  Bishop 
Wilson's  sermons  had  upon  his  life. 

"One  night  twenty  years  ago  hearing  that  Bishop 
Alpheus  W.  Wilson  was  to  preach  a  mid-week  sermon  in  a 

148 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


small  Methodist  Church  in  Raleigh,  I  made  one  of  a  con- 
gregation of  less  than  one  hundred  which  heard  him  preach 
the  greatest  sermon  to  which  I  have  listened.  After  the 
passing  of  a  fifth  of  a  century  that  sermon  remains  with  me 
still.     It  has  helped  me  all  the  succeeding  years.  " 

At  his  funeral  services  in  Trinity  Church,  Balti- 
more, which  had  been  founded  largely  through  his 
instrumentality,  and  with  which  he  had  been  pe- 
culiarly identified  for  years,  these  tributes  were  paid 
to  his  marvelous  power  as  a  preacher. 

Bishop  Eugene  R.  Hendrix,  senior  Bishop  of  our 
Church : 

"Was  there  ever  a  more  devoted  student  of  the  word 
of  God  than  Alpheus  W.  Wilson?  Prepared  by  his 
scholarly  training  in  early  life,  he  formed  the  habit  of 
reading  God's  Word  in  the  original  languages,  especially 
the  New  Testament.  It  is  said  that  he  read  it  through 
entirely  every  few  weeks.  He  thought  in  terms  of  the 
Greek  Testament;  especially  did  he  explore  the  life  of 
Paul.  Was  there  ever  such  a  Pauline  preacher,  such  an 
interpreter  of  the  Pauline  mind  ?  Was  there  ever  one  who 
expounded  more  fully  Paul's  great  teachings?  What  a 
delight  to  hear  him !  He  preached  as  some  one  has  vitally 
described:  'It  is  not  in  circles  that  he  preached,  but  in 
spirals :  higher  and  higher  he  rose  until  he  brought  us  to  the 
cross  and  made  us  feel  with  him,  '  For  me  to  live  is  Christ. '' 
He  was  a  reader  of  many  books,  but  his  chief  study  was 
God's  Word,  and  men  everywhere  accepted  from  his  lips 
great  expositions  of  God's  truth.  I  doubt  whether 
Methodism  has  ever  had  but  one  such  a  preacher — Stephen 
Olin.  Alpheus  W.  Wilson  was  more  generally  known  as 
an  expositor,  and  noted  as  a  preacher  of  the  Gospel. " 

Bishop  Earl  Cranston,  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church : 

"Sometimes  we  hear  of  a  preacher  that  'he  was  not  at 
his  best. '     Never  have  I  heard  Bishop  Wilson  preach  when 

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ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


he  was  not  at  his  best.  I  never  knew  him  to  lack  in  clear- 
ness of  thought,  in  appropriateness  of  expression.  I  had 
almost  said  in  completeness  of  logic,  in  clearness  of  faith, 
because  that  is  an  element  in  the  proper  presentation  of 
the  Scriptures.  I  have  never  known  him  to  fail  to  do  his 
best,  such  were  his  resources  of  mind  with  the  great  top- 
ics of  gospel  truth,  such  the  very  close  communion  of 
his  soul  with  Christ,  such  his  absolute  reHance  at  all  times 
upon  the  Holy  Ghost.  It  never  could  be  truthfully  said: 
'Well,  the  Bishop  was  not  himself  to-day.'  He  was  a 
marvelous  preacher,  as  Bishop  Hendrix  has  well  said. " 

Bishop  Luther  B.  Wilson,  of  the  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church: 

"I  cannot  forbear  to  pay  my  tribute  to  him  as  the 
mightiest  pieacher  that  it  has  ever  been  my  privilege  to 
hear,  one  who  made  as  clear  as  crystal,  and  yet  as  glowing 
as  the  burning  sun,  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus  Christ — one 
so  clear  in  all  the  purposes  of  his  intellect,  and  of  his  faith, 
made  it  easy  for  one  to  follow  him  and  climb  up  and  see 
visions  of  open  gates,  and  of  the  diademed  Lord. " 

Rev.  B.  W.  Bond,  D.  D.,  who  had  enjoyed  a 
friendship  of  long  standing  with  the  Bishop : 

"The  preaching  of  Bishop  Wilson  was  as  unique  as  it 
was  great.  Utterly  devoid  as  it  was  of  any  effort  after 
elocutionary  or  rhetorical  oratory,  it  nevertheless  showed 
him  to  be  one  of  the  greatest  masters  of  effective  speech. 
While  upon  the  platform  and  in  the  discussion  of  other 
subjects  also,  he  wielded  the  weapons  of  debate  with  such 
readiness  and  effect  that  few  cared  to  enter  into  combat 
with  him,  the  pulpit  was  preeminently  his  throne  of  power. 
There  the  word,  and  the  word  alone,  was  his  theme.  His 
expositions  of  the  Truth  were  always  fresh.  _  During  fifty 
years  I  have  heard  him,  at  times  at  short  intervals,  but 
never  without  new  and  most  instructive  views  presented 
by  him.  His  sennons  always  seemed  born  of  a  deep, 
spiritual  apprehension  of  the  inner  meaning  of  the  Divine 
word,  attained  by  few  men,  gained  by  constant  meditation 

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ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


and  still  more  by  constant  communion  with  God.  Massive 
yet  penetrating,  deep  yet  opening  clearly  new  vistas  of 
thought  and  revelation,  he  preached  with  'logic  on  fire,' 
his  whole  being,  mind  and  heart  and  spirit  aglow  with  the 
glorious  message  of  salvation  with  which  he  was  com- 
missioned by  his  Master,  expressing  himself,  as  he  always 
did,  in  the  choicest  and  most  expressive  language.  He 
seemed  as  one  of  the  old  prophets  declaring  the  counsel  of 
Jehovah,  yet  breathing  forth  also  an  apostolic  spirit  of 
love;  a  modern  John,  beloved  and  loving,  yet  also  of  truth 
and  righteousness. " 

Rev.  John  O.  Willson,  D.  D.,  President  of  Lander 
College,  who  heard  the  sermon  Bishop  Wilson 
preached  in  Greenwood,  S.  C.,  shortly  before  his 
death,  which  was  the  last  that  ever  fell  from  his  lips : 

"There  is  no  question  about  the  greatness  of  Bishop 
Wilson.  He  was  the  greatest  preacher  I  ever  heard  or 
ever  expect  to  hear,  and  I  have  heard  many  great  preach- 
ers, and  'never  a  man  spake  like  this  man. '  I  trust  the 
quotation  is  not  sacrilegious.  But  he  spake  for  his  Lord, 
and  spake  like  his  Lord's  servant,  that  wonderful  Apostle 
to  the  Gentiles. 

"I  make  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  from  the  first 
sermon  that  I  heard  him  preach  in  1878,  and  all  the  ser- 
mons down,  this  sermon  was  the  climax  of  them  all.  It 
seems  to  me  now  that  that  must  have  been  his  swan  song, 
the  sweetest  of  them  all.  All  that  profoundness  of  learning, 
all  that  clearness  of  vision,  all  that  we  never,  never  shall 
hear  again.  We  sat  there,  the  congregation  of  which  I 
was  a  part,  we  sat  there  and  listened  and  listened  and 
listened  and  our  hearts  were  fixed  on  better  life  in  time  to 
come  and  better  service,  and  better  admiration  for  this 
wonderful  preacher.  Oh,  the  pity  of  it — why  didn't  I 
know  it  was  to  be  the  last  time,  why  didn't  I  have  my 
stenographer  there  to  take  down  those  wonderful  words — 
I  could  not  take  the  tone,  but  I  might  have  had  the  words. 
Oh,  it  is  a  pity,  indeed,  to  think  that  that  preaching  will 
not  be  heard  by  us  again.  " 

151 


CHAPTER  X. 

The  Bishop  Asa  Man:    His  Mental  Habits 
AND  Powers. 

Bishop  Wilson  was  known  as  a  profound  thinker 
and  scholar  throughout  the  Church.  He  was 
blessed  with  a  high  order  of  intellectual  powers  and 
was  most  diligent  in  their  development  and  im- 
provement. From  his  early  years  he  held  his  mind 
to  strict  discipline  and  training  and  naturally  formed 
studious  habits  which  became  more  and  more  pro- 
nounced as  he  grew  in  years.  He  was  a  critical 
student  to  the  time  of  his  death.  Besides  his  study 
of  Hebrew,  Greek  and  the  Bible,  not  only  in  the 
English  versions  but  in  the  original  tongues,  he  read 
philosophy,  science,  histor3^  biography,  and  theology. 
He  was  familiar  with  the  fruits  of  modern  scholar- 
ship, but  never  for  a  moment  was  his  well  grounded 
orthodoxy  colored  by  the  drifting  opinions  of  what  is 
popularly  known  as  "advanced  theology."  He 
gave  no  little  study  to  the  world's  religions  and  their 
comparative  values,  but  gave  his  heart  and  his  al- 
legiance to  the  religion  of  Jesus  Christ  to  which  none 
of  them  can  be  compared.  The  human  character 
and  impotence  of  the  one  accentuates  the  divine 
character  and  strength  of  the  other.  The  contrast 
reveals  a  firm  foundation  for  the  Christian  faith. 

His  masterly  mental  grasp  and  retention  of  what 
he  mastered  made  him  one  of  the  best  equipped  and 
readiest  public  speakers  of  the  age.  The  wealth  of 
his  great  mind  made  contribution  to  every  sermon  he 

152 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


preached  and  every  address  he  made.  To  the 
thoughtful,  either  in  private  or  pubHc  speech,  he  was 
an  overflowing  foiintain  of  knowledge  and  inspira- 
tion. 

One  of  the  reasons  for  his  ripe  scholarship  was  not 
only  because  he  had  a  massive,  well  trained  intellect, 
but  because  he  had  so  wisely  improved  his  time. 
He  was  never  triflingly  employed,  but  whether  at 
home  or  abroad,  on  a  railway  train,  a  steamship,  in  a 
buggy  crossing  the  country,  or  making  his  way  in 
primitive  fashion  through  Oriental  lands,  he  general- 
ly had  a  book  in  his  hand  and  was  engrossed  in  study. 
Bishop  Hoss  in  writing  from  Korea  on  the  occasion 
of  an  official  visit,  to  that  land  some  years  ago,  said 
concerning  him: 

"When  Bishop  Wilson  first  visited  the  country,  he 
made  the  trip  back  and  forth  in  a  chair,  carried  by  four 
coolies,  consuming  two  days  each  way.  The  tradition 
among  the  brethren  is  that  he  spent  most  of  the  time 
reading  the  Greek  Testament;  and  I  can  well  believe  it. 
Lying  down,  or  rising  up,  abiding  at  home  or  going  abroad, 
on  land  or  on  sea,  that  Greek  Testament  has  been  his  most 
constant  companion  ever  since  I  first  knew  him.  And 
what  wonderful  things  he  has  managed  to  get  out  of  it! 
Is  there  any  one  of  his  brethren  left  who  will  ever  be  able 
to  sound  its  shoreless  depths  as  he  has  done?  While  fol- 
lowing even  remotely  in  his  footsteps,  I  cannot  help  feeling 
as  if  I  were  in  the  King's  highway.  " 

Lord  Bacon  in  his  essay  entitled,  "Of  Studies" 
makes  this  observation ; ' '  Reading  maketh  a  full  man, 
conference  a  ready  man,  writing  an  exact  man." 
The  impression  generally  prevails  that  though  the 
Bishop  was  a  great  reader,  and  speaker,  he  was  never 
given  to  writing.     This  is  a  mistake.     During  the 

153 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


early  part  of  his  life  he  not  only  wrote  many  lengthy 
letters  but  also  some  of  his  sermons  in  full  and  care- 
fully prepared  many  logical  outlines.  The  author 
has  before  him  one  hundred  and  twenty-eight  of  the 
latter ;  seventy-eight  of  them  are  based  upon  texts  in 
the  Pauline  Epistles  and  fifty  upon  texts  from  all  other 
sources,  showing  the  bent  of  his  mind  even  in  the 
early  period  of  his  ministry.  It  was  not  until  his 
right  hand  was  maimed  in  a  railroad  accident  in  his 
latter  years  that  he  was  compelled  to  forego  in  a 
large  measure  the  use  of  his  pen.  This  injury  coupled 
with  his  general  aversion  to  writing,  correcting,  and 
revising  stenographic  reports  of  his  sermons  and 
lectures,  has  resulted  in  a  serious  loss  to  the  theologi- 
cal world.  The  only  products  of  his  brain  preserved 
in  book  form  are  the  Cole  Lectures  for  1894  and  1910, 
entitled  "The  Witnesses  to  Christ,"  and  "The  Life 
and  Mind  of  Saint  Paul,"  respectively.  These 
books  have  been  so  well  wrought  from  the  Scriptural 
material  interpreted  by  the  mind  and  heart  of  the 
author,  and  are  so  fundamental  in  character  that 
time  will  only  add  to  their  permanent  value. 

As  an  illustration  of  the  thoroughness  with  which 
he  mastered  a  subject  and  the  retention  of  the  re- 
sults of  his  investigations,  a  paragraph  is  quoted 
from  a  letter  to  a  friend  who  had  written  to  him  in 
1887,  while  he  was  at  Kobe,  Japan,  expressing  fear 
that  the  Revised  Version  of  the  New  Testament 
which  was  then  a  burning  subject  before  the  people, 
might  overthrow  some  cardinal  doctrine. 

This  paragraph  on  Biblical  inspiration  written  in 
the  midst  of  his  Episcopal  duties  in  the  East  with  no 


154 


Ill 


TRINITY  M.  E.  CliUUCH,  SOUTH,  HAl.TI.MdHi;    MD. 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


books  of  reference  to  consult  shows  a  remarkable 
familiarity  with  the  subject. 

"The  revision  of  the  translation  has  really  nothing  to 
do  with  the  question.  Holy  men  of  old  spalce  as  they  were 
moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost :  but  does  that  imply  that  their 
words  would  never  be  lost  by  the  world's  negligence,  or 
corrupted  by  the  world's  sin?  It  rather  seems  to  me  that 
the  preservation  in  their  integrity  and  purity  of  the  words 
spoken  was  one  of  the  tests  to  which  men  were  subjected — 
part  of  their  trial  to  prove  whether  the\^  or  any  of  them 
were  worthy  to  become  custodians  of  the  truth  of  God  and 
to  reap  its  fruits.  God  did  not  propose  to  operate  b}'  a 
continuous  and  unending  miracle  for  the  perpetuation  of 
the  truth.  In  this,  as  in  all  other  matters.  He  made  the 
provision  and  put  the  responsibility  of  making  it  effective 
upon  men.  Nor  was  it  ever  claimed  that  the  translators 
of  the  Bible  were  inspired,  or  their  translation  infallible. 
That  would  be  to  continue  the  miracle  in  another  form. 
Good  men,  holy  men  used  all  the  knowledge  at  their  com- 
mand to  translate  the  Scriptures  out  of  the  original  Greek 
and  Hebrew  into  English.  Wyclif ,  Tyndale,  Cranmer,  and 
others  did  marvelously  good  work  in  this  line:  but  the 
Hebrew  and  Greek  languages  were  not  so  well  known  by 
them  as  they  are  now:  nor  had  the  many  manuscript 
copies  and  versions  in  other  languages  with  which  we  are 
now  familiar  been  discovered  in  their  time.  Their  work 
was  revised  and  improved  by  the  translators  of  King 
James'  time,  who  gave  us  the  version  known  as  the 
authorized  and  used  by  the  English  speaking  Church  of 
God  all  over  the  world.  That  version  was  to  its  pre- 
decessors just  what  the  late  version  is  to  it:  and  it  met 
with  the  same  sort  of  opposition  and  foolish  comment  and 
made  its  way  very  slowly.  It  was  never  authoritatively 
adopted  by  any  church :  and  its  only  claims  to  the  designa- 
tion '  authorized '  found  on  its  title  page — no,  not  found  on 
its  title  page,  but  universally  employed  to  distinguish  it. 
is  that  it  gradually  won  its  way  to  universal  acceptance 
and  supplanted  every  other.  To  this  day  the  Common 
Prayer  Book  of  the  English  Church  and  the  Protestant 


155 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Episcopal  Church  sets  forth  by  authority  another  version. 
It  was  never  pretended  that  the  authorized  version  was 
a  perfect  translation,  or  that  it  always  followed  the  best 
readings.  It  was  simply  the  best  available  and  con- 
tained all  things  necessary  for  eternal  salvation.  The 
revision  is  in  many  respects  an  improvement:  but  in  not 
one  item  of  our  faith  has  it  made  the  smallest  change. 
The  things  proved  from  the  authorized  are  equally  proved 
from  the  revision.  The  appeal  is  still,  as  it  always  was, 
in  disputed  points  to  the  original:  and  differences  in  un- 
derstanding and  interpretation  will  exist  as  long  as  men 
are  fallible. " 

Contrary  to  popular  belief,  his  great  mind  could 
take  up  small  things  and  extract  their  real  substance. 
There  was  formerly  at  Trinity  a  young  ladies'  mis- 
sionary society  called  the  Argosy.  To  this  most  of 
the  girls  of  the  church  belonged.  Once  a  year  they 
held  the  usual  open  meeting,  with  refreshments  and 
music,  and  set  forth  their  small  results  and  made  the 
occasion  a  festivity.  Several  years  he  was  asked  to 
make  a  brief  talk  on  these  anniversaries.  He  never 
declined  when  well  enough  to  speak.  He  would  go, 
sit  through  the  exercises,  hearing  about  the  fifty  or 
sixty  dollars  gathered  in  with  such  pride,  and  then 
make  a  talk  of  a  few  minutes  that  would  stir  everj'- 
girl  present  and  make  her  desire  earnestly  to  do  more 
than  her  share  in  the  Church's  work  for  missions. 

Every  great  scholar  has  some  mental  diversion. 
Bishop  Wilson's  was  detective  stories  of  the  Sherlock 
Holmes  type,  and  these  he  read  with  avidity.  "The 
Three  Musketeers"  was  one  of  his  favorites,  and  the 
periodicals  "Adventure"  and  the  "Popular  Maga- 
zine" were  not  strangers  to  him.  This  class  of  liter- 
ature was  not  only  restful  to  his  mind  after  a  study 

156 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


of  volumes  of  ponderous  thought,  but  its  psychologi- 
cal suggestiveness  helped  him  in  his  thinking. 

Bishop  Wilson  when  at  home  lived  chiefly  in  his 
study  reading  and  thinking.  The  studious  habits  of 
a  life  time  which  yielded  the  fruits  of  such  ripe  and 
accurate  scholarship,  were  not  broken  in  his  latter 
years  of  physical  infirmity.  In  the  midst  of  suffering 
his  well-trained  mind  performed  its  functions  with 
a  force  scarcely  less  than  in  the  days  of  his  fullest 
vigor,  and  grappled  and  mastered  the  great  problems 
confronting  the  Church.  He  was  a  constant  student. 
When  for  five  months  in  1908  he  was  so  seriously  ill, 
when  there  was  scarcely  a  night  when  his  mind  did 
not  temporarily  wander,  he  read  and  mastered  five 
volumes  by  such  authors  as  Denney,  Hort,  Orr,  and 
Swete — notwithstanding  one  third  of  Swete's  w^ork 
was  in  Greek  with  Latin  footnotes.  This  showed  the 
usual  triumph  of  his  mind  over  his  bodily  afflictions. 
During  the  last  thirteen  years  of  his  life  he  read  his 
Greek  Testament  through  seventy-six  times. 

When  over  against  his  mental  achievements  is 
placed  the  fact  that  Bishop  Wilson  was  never  a 
robust  man,  that  he  suffered  from  various  ailments, 
and  as  some  one  has  well  said,  "dragged  a  weak  and 
often  a  sickly  body  through  his  whole  life, "  what  he 
accomplished  in  the  intellectual  realm  cannot  be 
regarded  as  short  of  marvelous.  He  knew  what  it 
was  to  suffer  prolonged  spells  of  illness,  and  even  to 
have  his  physicians  inform  him  that  death  was  not 
far  away.  But  none  of  these  things  moved  him. 
He  met  suffering  with  the  patience  and  fortitude  of 
a  stoic  but  influenced  by  far  loftier  motives.  He 
endured  as  seeing  Him  who  is  invisible.     During  one 


157 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


of  his  spells  of  serious  illness  a  member  of  his  family 
said  that  if  he  knew  that  he  would  die  that  afternoon 
that  knowledge  w^ould  not  even  perceptibly  quicken 
his  pulses.  Indeed,  it  is  probable,  had  it  been  pos- 
sible, he  would  have  continued  his  thinking  and 
studying  to  his  last  hour,  as  he  had  fully  committed 
himself  to  God  years  ago,  and  was  ready  at  any 
moment  to  obey  the  final  summons.  It  is  likely  that 
at  the  beginning  of  the  brief  illness  that  terminated 
in  his  death  he  knew  that  the  end  was  at  hand;  but 
his  last  hours  with  his  family,  ill  as  he  was,  were  as 
calm  and  unrufSed  as  if  they  had  been  a  part  of  the 
ordinarv  course  of  his  life. 


158 


CHAPTER  XL 

The  Bishop  as  a  Man:    His  Home  Life  and  So- 
cial Qualities. 

Although  Bishop  Wilson  was  undemonstrative 
and  reserved  by  nature  yet  within  the  sacred  pre- 
cincts of  his  home  he  relaxed  and  bestowed  upon  his 
family  the  treasures  of  his  affection  and  love. 

His  marriage  was  the  culmination  of  a  romance 
which  had  its  beginning  in  an  old-fashioned  ex- 
perience meeting.  On  one  occasion  he  visited  a 
girls'  class  in  company?"  v/ith  an  old  preacher  of  the 
Puritan  type  who  abjured  the  vanities  of  this  sinful 
world,  would  not  wear  buttons  on  his  coat,  or  sleep 
in  a  feather  bed,  or  touch  food  prepared  on  Sunday. 
One  of  the  girls  had  a  feather  in  her  hat  or  some  or- 
nament on  her  person.  She  was  duly  rebuked  by 
the  old  man  for  her  godless  pride,  and  burst  into 
tears.  The  heart  of  the  chivalrous  young  preacher 
went  out  to  the  weeping  girl,  who  four  years  later 
became  his  wife. 

But  he  did  not  win  her  without  great  effort.  For 
a  long  time  he  was  kept  in  suspense  regarding  her 
answer.  But  he  was  a  constant  and  persistent 
lover.  He  felt  that  in  her  word  were  wrapped  up 
his  success  and  happiness  for  all  time. 

As  her  home  was  in  Baltimore,  it  was  not  unusual 
for  him  to  make  engagements  that  would  lead  to  that 
city.  But  like  Paul  to  whom  he  referred  in  this  con- 
nection, his  chief  strength  was  in  his  epistles.  His 
letters  to  her,  though  largely  occupied  with  his  ex- 

159 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


periences  concerning  his  work,  usually  closed  with 
several  sentences,  which  were  the  very  quintessence  of 
an  effective  appeal  to  the  heart  of  a  cultured  young 
woman.  Their  number  had  a  cumulative  effect  and 
accomphshed  the  end  he  so  ardently  sought.  It  was 
an  epoch  in  his  life  when  she  finally  consented  to 
become  the  sharer  of  the  joys  and  sorrows  of  the 
young  itinerant,  and  brought  to  him  the  wealth  of 
her  young  womanhood. 

Years  afterward  when  on  an  official  visit  to  the 
Orient,  he  sent  this  beautiful  sentiment  to  the 
sweetheart  of  his  youth  on  the  occasion  of  the  an- 
niversary of  two  important  events  in  her  life,  showing 
that  time  had  but  strengthened  and  matured  the 
affection  of  his  earlier  days : 

"Next  Saturday  is  your  birthday.  Last  Friday  was 
the  thirtieth  anniversary  of  our  marriage.  1  am  not 
with  you  to  do  the  honor  and  show  the  affection  you  so 
richly  merit  on  either  day.  Absence  does  not  affect  the 
heart  and  the  sentiment  in  this  case.  I  think  of  all  your 
love  and  care,  your  patience  and  suffering  and  thank  God 
that  you  have  "been  given  to  me  and  are  still  spared  to  me. 
I  can  never  tell  how  much  I  owe  to  }'ou.  May  our 
Heavenly  Father  reward  you  with  all  the  good  you  de- 
serve and  make  your  life  brighter  and  richer  as  the  years 
go.  Age  can  take  nothing  good  from  us.  It  will  bring 
many  consolations  with  it. " 

Again  in  a  subsequent  letter,  he  referred  to  her 
birthday  after  it  had  passed : 

"I  did  not  forget  that  yesterday  was  your  birthday  and 
was  thinking  of  you  all  the  day  and  wishing  I  could  be 
with  you  and  show  you  how  glad  I  am  that  God  has  so 
long  spared  you  to  me.  May  He  add  many,  many  years 
yet  to  your  life  and  make  them  abundant  in  blessing. 
You  are  not  yet  awake  this  Sunday  morning.     The  hour 

160 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


with  you  is  4:30  A.  M.     May  the  whole  day  be  full  of 
comfort,  peace  and  blessing  to  you  and  the  children. " 

These  tender  little  attentions  mean  so  much  to  a 
woman  who  keeps  the  fires  of  love  and  worship 
burning  upon  the  altar  of  the  home  while  her  husband 
is  far  away. 

Mrs.  Wilson  was  a  great  comfort  and  strength  to 
her  husband  through  all  the  years  of  their  wedded 
life.  She  often  accompanied  him  on  his  long  jour- 
neys to  the  mission  fields  of  the  Church,  when  as 
Bishop  he  made  his  official  visitations.  On  one  of 
these  visits,  the  last  in  1908  when  Mrs.  Wilson  was 
with  him,  they  went  out  of  their  way  to  India  to 
ascend  Kinchinjunga,  one  of  the  highest  peaks  of 
the  Himalayas  and  of  the  world,  the  ascent  of  which 
had  long  been  one  of  the  Bishop's  greatest  desires. 
They  reached  the  foot  of  the  peak  one  night  and  were 
to  make  the  ascent  the  next  day.  But  on  that 
morning  Mrs.  Wilson  was  taken  ill  and  could  not  go. 
He  did  not  leave  her  in  care  of  some  one  and  make 
the  ascent  without  her  as  many  men  would  have 
done  under  like  conditions,  but  after  having  come 
that  far,  he  cheerfully  sacrificed  a  cherished  hope  of 
a  life  time  and  remained  with  her  at  the  foot  of  the 
mountain.  He  never  had  another  opportunity  to 
climb  the  noted  peak. 

Her  death  in  1908  after  their  return  from  the 
Orient  was  a  blow  from  which  the  Bishop  never 
fully  recovered.  He  silently  bore  his  grief.  Though 
there  were  few  outward  manifestations,  his  heart  was 
rent  and  torn.  What  inexpressible  pathos  can  be 
read  between  the  lines  of  this  part  of  a  letter  to  his 
daughter,  written  from  Montreal,  June  22,   1908, 

161 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


whither  he  had  gone  shortly  after  he  had  laid  his 
loved  one  away : 

"  I  sometimes  feel  that  I  acted  selfishly  in  coming  away 
and  leaving  you  alone  in  the  midst  of  associations  and 
memories  that  cut  me  to  the  quick  every  hour.  Yet,  if  I 
had  remained  I  should  have  but  added  to  your  cares  and 
aggravated  your  sorrows.  I  v/anted  you  to  recover  your- 
self, because  you  have  years  of  life  before  you  and  much  to 
do.  My  course  must  be  run  in  a  few  more  years  and  my 
work  is  practically  done.  My  colleagues  and  the_  church 
at  large  are  generous  and  kindly  and  give  me  entire  free- 
dom in  my  life;  but  I  have  lost  the  spring  from  my  move- 
ments and  can  hope  to  do  but  little  more.  The  wound  is 
deadly.  Fifty-one  years  of  such  intimacy  and  vital 
oneness  cannot  be  broken  into  and  leave  nature  unim- 
paired. " 

For  several  years  previous  to  her  death,  Mrs. 
Wilson  had  been  a  severe  but  an  uncomplaining 
sufferer  from  a  trouble  that  apparently  arose  from  a 
trifling  occurrence.  About  1899  a  small  abrasion  on 
a  finger  began  to  annoy  her.  Remedies  suggested  by 
her  physician  would  help  at  first,  but  shortly  lost 
effect.  In  1902  pain  set  in  which,  in  the  following 
years,  increased  to  agony.  For  hours  every  day  she 
could  only  sit  with  eyes  half-closed  and  endure  the 
suffering.  The  least  alleviation,  however,  would 
renew  her  sprighthness  and  energy.  She  never  gave 
up  her  interest  and  labor  in  her  Church.  Her  Sun- 
day School  class  of  young  men,  students  at  the  col- 
leges of  Baltimore,  was  a  joy  always  to  her — and 
through  them  for  years  inquiries  and  affectionate  re- 
minders came  from  all  over  the  Church.  She  spent 
Saturdays  in  study  of  the  lesson;  and  would  come 
home  after  Church  service  on  Sunday  with  a  vivid 

162 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


account  of  the  discussion  held  with  her  class.  The 
pain  always  seemed  to  modify  in  time  to  allow  her  to 
do  this  work.  But  it  was  pain.  It  was  treated  with 
Roentgen  ray;  everything  was  tried  that  was  known; 
but  in  1905  surgery  was  resorted  to,  and  two  fingers 
removed.  This  seemed  effectual;  she  was  free  from 
suffering,  and  while  she  minded  the  mutilation,  no 
one  ever  heard  a  word  of  complaint  from  her  lips, 
during  the  whole  time. 

In  the  fall  of  1906,  while  at  a  missionary  meeting 
in  Winchester,  Virginia,  she  had  a  bad  fall;  and  from 
this  her  daughter  dated  the  return  of  her  disease. 
The  Golden  Wedding  celebration  was  held  March  4, 
1907;  the  next  day  Bishop  and  Mrs.  Wilson  started 
for  China,  to  share  in  the  centenary  of  missions  held 
that  year.  They  were  gone  more  than  ten  months. 
Mrs.  Wilson's  disease  must  have  made  rapid  pro- 
gress. Her  letters  showed  all  the  time  a  longing  to 
be  home  with  her  children.  She  was  devotedly  at- 
tached to  her  friends  in  China  and  Japan;  enjoyed 
their  society,  loved  their  work,  would  write  the 
smallest  details  of  missionary  life  and  talk,  and  found 
more  and  more  spiritual  intercourse  opening  with 
them.  But  she  was  homesick,  and  growing  feebler 
all  the  time — though  she  stood  the  trip  to  the  Ming 
Tombs,  and  the  Great  Wall  in  China,  better  than 
anyone  else  in  her  party. 

They  returned  by  India  and  Europe.  She  had 
begun  to  see  her  condition  at  that  time  and  wrote 
from  Ceylon  that  she  feared  she  might  be  quaran- 
tined at  Calcutta  for  bubonic  plague,  as  she  had  some 
symptoms;  but  Dr.  (now  Bishop)  Lambuth  had 
said  she  must  refer  to  him  if  she  had  any  trouble. 

163 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Later  on  in  their  journeying,  she  said  to  Dr.  Lam- 
buth  she  felt  she  had  her  death  warrant;  but  had 
no  fear.  On  her  arrival  in  Baltimore  in  January, 
1908,  she  tried  to  persuade  Bishop  Wilson  to  tell 
their  daughter  what  she  feared — but  he  was  like  men 
mostly  are — he  couldn't  bring  himself  to  deal  the 
blow — she  had  it  to  do  herself.  It  was  received  as 
she  had  expected;  and  the  only  word  that  showed 
her  endurance  was  strained  too  far,  during  all  her 
suffering,  came  as  she  saw  her  daughter's  grief — "I 
can't  stand  that!"  in  sharp  tones.  Another  sur- 
gical operation  in  a  day  or  two  showed  that  the 
cancer  had  extended  too  far  for  more  than  prevention 
of  some  pain;  her  arm  was  removed  and  her  family 
knew  that  her  life  was  limited  to  a  few  months. 

It  was  a  strange  period.  Mrs.  Wilson  was  able 
in  a  little  while  to  move  about,  to  go  out,  occasionally 
to  visit  friends,  to  walk,  and  was  cheerful,  even  for- 
getful of  the  loss  of  her  arm.  She  tried  to  learn  to 
write  with  her  left  hand,  so  she  could  keep  up  cor- 
respondence with  her  husband.  She  was  most 
courageous,  never  anticipating  a  future  weakness. 
Her  enjoyment  of  letters,  attention  from  friends,  her 
devotion  to  the  Church  at  large,  her  details  of  the 
eastern  tour,  her  estimate  of  the  missionaries,  and 
appreciation  of  all  their  kindness  to  her,  was  re- 
markable to  her  family,  who  understood  that  she 
could  not  long  withstand  the  progress  of  the  disease. 
Certainly  it  was  a  marvelous  aid  to  them,  as  they 
bore  their  own  grief  and  anxiety.  In  April  there  was 
the  hint  that  the  mind  was  not  going  to  last  as  long 
as  the  body.  Most  remarkable  at  this  stage  was  the 
evidence  that  her  mind  had  been  stayed  on  her 


164 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Saviour  so  long  that  she  would  know  Him  longer  than 
any  other.  When  the  preachers  whom  she  loved  would 
come,  they  would  go  into  her  room  and  pray  with 
her,  and  the  words  of  prayer  would  quiet  her  nervous 
restlessness.  The  day  before  her  death  Rev.  E.  V. 
Regester,  presiding  elder  of  the  Baltimore  district 
and  a  former  pastor,  came  and  knelt  beside  her — his 
words  were  the  last  she  ever  heard  of  prayer  on  this 
side.  Her  husband  tried  once  to  pray  with  her;  but 
the  effort  was  so  hard  his  daughter  would  not  let  him 
again  make  it.  But  his  prayer  was  beautiful — ' '  Thy 
child  is  suffering.  Thou  hast  the  power  to  heal; 
Thou  didst  heal  those  who  were  afflicted  when  Thou 
wast  here  on  earth.  If  it  be  Thy  will,  touch  her 
with  that  hand  of  love;  allay  the  pain;  and  be  here 
with  her  to  the  time  when  she  shall  pass  into  the 
land  of  joy  and  light.  "  Such  words  as  these  would 
calm  and  soothe.  One  night  she  was  overheard  to 
say  to  herself  ' '  I  reckon  this  is  as  easy  a  way  to  go  to 
meet  Jesus  as  any  could  be.  "  Another  time  she  had 
a  fancy  to  have  hymns  sung.  A  favorite  niece  sang 
most  of  her  hymns,  and  when  those  lines  came — 
"When  through  the  deep  waters  I  call  thee  to  go" — 
she  pointed  to  the  place  of  the  missing  arm  and  ex- 
claimed "He  has  not  let  even  this  be  too  much  for 
me!"  She  would  say  "I  need  not  be  anxious  as  to 
how  I'll  get  along — my  husband  and  my  children 
cannot  do  too  much  for  me — they  will  never  get 
tired  of  helping  me."  Even  in  her  utter  break  up 
her  vagaries  were  interesting.  Old  war  memories 
were  tangled  in  with  later  events.  The  grand- 
daughter was  in  a  hospital  part  of  this  time;  and  it 
was  touching  to  hear  how  Mrs.  Wilson  would  try  to 


165 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


spare  this  beloved  child  the  news  of  her  own  illness. 
On  one  occasion  she  went  to  see  the  child.  On  the 
street  cars  was  a  man  who  had  lost  both  arms,  and 
wore  a  sign  asking  passengers  and  conductors  to  lend 
kindly  aid.  Mrs.  Wilson  remarked,  "He  is  not  so 
fortunate  as  I  am,  poor  fellow ! ' ' 

At  last,  June  fourth,  1908,  her  spirit  left  the 
earth,  which  she  had  dearly  loved,  for  the  heaven 
which  had  been  her  goal  since  her  conversion  at  six- 
teen— ^fifty-eight  years.  No  one  ever  enjoyed  life 
more  than  she  did;  and  surely  life  eternal  must  be  a 
wellspring  of  pleasure  to  her. 

After  a  simple  funeral  service  at  her  home  con- 
ducted by  Dr.  Forrest  J.  Prettyman,  Dr.  B.  W.  Bond, 
and  Revs.  J.  A.  Anderson  and  E.  V.  Regester,  all  that 
was  mortal  of  this  saintly  woman  was  laid  to  rest 
under  many  lovely  flowers  in  Loudon  Park  to  keep 
her  three  little  boys  company,  who  for  years  had  been 
quietly  sleeping  after  life's  fitful  fever. 

Telegrams  and  letters  of  sympathy  came  from  all 
over  the  country.  A  letter  from  Bishop  Honda  of 
the  Methodist  Church  of  Japan,  in  which  the  Jap- 
anese Bishop  in  beautiful  simplicity  expresses  his 
sympathy  in  an  unfamiliar  language,  has  been 
selected  from  the  many  others  and  is  given  a  place  in 
this  volume. 

Arima,  Settsu.     Japan.     September  4,   1908. 

"Bishop  A.  W.  Wilson,  D.  D.,  LL.  D.,  Baltimore. 

"Dear  Bishop  Wilson, 

"I  am  sorry  that  I  did  not  know  of  Mrs.  Wilson's 
removal  to  the  higher  world  till  the  recent  time.  I  sym- 
pathize with  you  from  my  heart.  I  don't  know  what 
shall  I  say.     I  have  an  experience  that  I  lost  my  young 

166 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


companion,  but  there  must  be  some  difference  with  older 
people. 

"I  can  suppose  only  you  must  be  very  lonely.  Of 
course  not  as  worldly  man.  The  Father  and  the  Lord  will 
give  you  or  be  giving  you  much  comfort. 

* '  I  came  here  yesterday  to  visit  the  mission  conference, 
Bishop  Ward  presiding.  Missionary  Brother  and  sisters 
are  doing  well.  Principal  native  preachers  are  here  too. 
It  is  a  good  sight  to  have  workers,  foreign  and  native,  so 
intimated.  This  is  our  characteristic  among  the  missions 
in  Japan.  The  united  church  is  in  encouraging  condition. 
Several  districts  are  engaging  in  second  evangelistic  cam- 
paign giving  good  records. 

"Sincerely  yours, 

"Y.  Honda." 

The  memory  of  Mrs.  Wilson's  beautiful  and 
saintly  life  has  been  a  benediction  to  a  host  of  people 
both  in  this  country  and  in  the  Orient  whose  privilege 
it  was  to  know  her. 

Bishop  and  Mrs.  Wilson  were  blessed  with  six 
children — three  boys  and  three  girls.  By  a  strange 
providence,  the  three  boys  died :  the  first  in  infancy 
July,  1859;  the  second,  Norval,  was  born  April,  1868, 
and  died  January,  1869;  the  third,  Alpheus  Waters, 
was  born  September,  1872,  and  died  of  smallpox 
February,  1873.  The  death  of  the  Bishop's  Httle 
namesake  from  this  dread  disease  was  particularly 
distressing.  Mrs.  Wilson,  quarantined  in  the  third 
story  of  the  home,  nursed  the  child  till  death  claimed 
him.  The  three  daughters  survived  their  parents. 
They  are  Maybelle  and  Nina  and  Mrs.  William  L. 
Weber,  all  of  whom  live  at  the  old  home  in  Baltimore, 

A  study  of  Bishop  Wilson's  home  life  would  be 
incomplete  without  at  least  a  hint  of  his  tenderness 
and  love  toward  his  eldest  child,  ' '  May. "     From  her 

167 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


birth  she  was  Hmited  as  to  mental  powers;  but  her 
loving  disposition  drew  from  her  father  the  warmest 
devotion.  He  never  failed  to  show  her  marked  con- 
sideration, and  welcomed  her  presence  and  attentions 
always  with  beautiful  appreciation  and  courtesy. 

The  Bishop  was  happy  in  having  a  daughter, 
Nina,  who  from  the  time  of  her  mother's  death  de- 
voted her  life  to  the  care  of  her  father,  anticipating 
his  every  want  and  providing  for  his  every  comfort. 
A  few  days  before  his  death,  in  the  home  of  Bishop 
Denny,  his  life-long  friend,  he  paid  this  tribute  to 
her :  ' '  Nina  is  the  best  woman  I  ever  knew.  I  have 
never  seen  any  one  so  unselfish;  and  what  she  has 
been  to  me,  no  one  will  ever  know,  not  even  she  her- 
self. "  What  a  priceless  legacy  are  these  words  which 
come  as  from  the  other  world  to  her  lonely  heart! 

In  a  description  of  his  home  and  family,  it  seems 
fit  to  mention  his  cook,  Kate  Lear,  who  had  lived 
with  him  about  forty  years.  She  was  brought  from 
Germany,  her  native  country,  when  two  years  old. 
She  possessed  the  best  traits  of  her  race.  When  the 
baby  Alpheus  was  taken  with  smallpox,  she  was  told 
she  had  better  leave — as  it  was  a  terribly  infectious 
disease.  With  the  toss  of  her  head  which  was  always 
a  characteristic,  she  replied  "Mr.  Wilson  couldn't 
manage  those  three  children  and  wait  on  Mrs.  Wil- 
son and  the  baby;"  and  she  stayed — which  was 
always  deeply  appreciated.  Her  relation  to  the 
family  was  always  far  above  that  of  a  servant.  She 
was  a  friend,  in  their  confidence,  always  interested  in 
their  affairs;  the  cooking  for  the  failing  appetite  of 
Bishop  Wilson  required  careful  attention,  and  she 
watched  over  his  coffee  and  general  diet  with  special 


168 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


care — though  in  later  years  the  cooking  for  the  rest 
might  not  always  have  been  perfect.  He  never  re- 
buked or  found  fault  with  her;  nor  did  she  stand  at 
all  in  awe  of  him;  she  did  not  hesitate  to  contradict 
him,  when  she  pleased;  and  the  only  notice  of  this 
would  be  an  amused  twinkle  of  his  eyes !  One  of  her 
best  qualities  was  her  unfailing  patience  and  tender- 
ness toward  his  oldest  daughter;  a  kindness  which 
was  never  forgotten.  She  saw  almost  the  last 
minutes  of  Bishop  and  Mrs.  Wilson;  and  went  to 
their  burials  with  their  children.  Few  people  can 
claim  so  long  and  close  service  from  a  domestic;  and 
it  is  perhaps  another  significant  fact  in  characterizing 
his  life  that  the  atmosphere  of  his  home  would  hold 
such  a  woman  that  long. 

There  was  something  magnetic  about  the  Bishop 
in  spite  of  his  reserve.  His  little  girls  always  clung 
to  him  with  peculiar  affection;  and  among  his  de- 
voted friends  were  several  poor  and  ignorant  women 
— one  a  laundress,  a  member  of  his  church  in  Wash- 
ington. At  Wesley  Grove,  after  a  night  service, 
when  he  had  exhorted  powerfully,  a  poor  laboring 
man  was  suddenly  converted,  and  rushed  up  into  the 
pulpit  and  flung  himself  on  Bishop  Wilson's  breast 
sobbing  with  joy. 

His  cultivated  tastes,  and  interest  in  what  are 
called  the  fine  arts,  made  him  an  agreeable  companion 
for  people  who  could  enjoy  worldly  advantages.  He 
took  great  pleasure  in  collecting  such  little  mementos 
of  his  travels  as  were  within  his  reach;  and  his  house 
was  in  a  modest  way  a  museum  of  foreign  curios. 
He  had  a  story  of  how  he  got  each ;  where  he  bought 
it,  what  kind  of  dealer  sold  and  chaffered,  or  what 


169 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


materials  it  was  made  of.  One  year  he  took  pleasure 
in  bringing  silks  home  to  his  daughters  and  nieces; 
not  that  they  were  more  beautiful  than  could  have 
been  bought  at  home,  but  they  were  oriental — and 
therefore  had  a  special  charm,  as  woven  in  strange 
looms  in  foreign  countries.  Pictures,  pottery,  silks, 
ivory,  all  suggestions  of  strange  quarters  of  the 
earth,  and  stranger  peoples,  were  deeply  interesting 
to  him ;  and  in  late  years  he  would  say  ' '  I  should  like 
to  see  Australia;  I  have  seen  all  the  other  quarters  of 
the  earth."  In  1907,  his  last  journey  to  China, 
with  his  wife  he  made  a  second  trip  to  the  Ming 
Tombs  and  the  Great  Wall ;  and  wrote  how  well  they 
two, his  wife  and  himself,  at  seventy-three  stood  that 
excessively  rough,  severe  travel. 

Bishop  Wilson  did  not  have  many  visitors. 
Preachers  and  laymen  who  would  have  considered  it 
an  honor  to  visit  him  refrained  from  doing  so  because 
they  thought  that  he  preferred  seclusion.  He  lived 
chiefly  to  himself  and  in  association  with  the  master 
minds  of  ancient  and  modern  times,  by  means  of  his 
carefully  selected  books.  He  is  remembered  by  the 
inner  circle  of  his  friends  who  were  privileged  to  see 
him  in  his  study,  as  clad  in  a  dressing  gown  and 
slippers,  and  sitting  in  a  comfortable,  reclining  chair, 
his  feet  upon  a  high  leather-cushioned  footrest,  with 
his  Greek  Testament  open  before  him  on  a  reading 
stand.  A  large  meerschaum  pipe,  which  the  Bishop 
would  slowly  smoke  when  talking  to  his  visitors,  was 
generally  within  convenient  reach.  There  was  a 
period  in  his  life  when  he  abjured  the  use  of  tobacco, 
but  after  a  time  he  resumed  smoking  which  seemed 
to  be  quite  a  comfort  to  him  in  his  latter  years. 

170 


•^v^-j^ 


CENTRAL  M.  K.  CIHRCll,  SOUTH,  BALTIMORE,  ML). 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


There  was  no  atmosphere  of  conscious  superiority 
about  Bishop  Wilson.  Though  not  without  a  certain 
knowledge  of  his  powers  and  gifts,  he  was  simple  in 
life  and  like  many  other  great  men  was  not  without 
humility. 

As  Bishop  Denny  aptly  expresses  it: 

"He  did  not  strain  himself  nor  pose;  he  was  just 
quietly  natural.  He  did  not  presume  upon  his  gifts,  his 
attainments,  or  his  position.  He  was  a  tremendous 
personality,  and  did  not  seem  to  know  that  palpable 
fact.  .  .  .  He  was  modest,  and,  except  when  his  re- 
sponsibilities demanded,  he  was  not  self-assertive;  but  he 
was  not  abashed  in  any  earthly  presence,  and  no  man 
could  have  made  him  cower. " 

He  had  never  aspired  to  popularity  in  the  social 
circle  and  cared  little  to  be  known  as  a  good  mixer, 
for  he  felt  there  was  something  better.  When  a 
young  preacher  he  gave  his  undivided  energies  to  the 
mastery  of  the  art  of  preaching  rather  than  the 
development  of  what  he  conceived  to  be  his  poor 
conversational  gifts.  The  product  was  a  great 
preacher  rather  than  a  past-master  of  men  of  the 
anecdotal  type. 

Rev.  H.  W.  Kinzer,  a  superannuate  of  the  Balti- 
more Conference,  has  published  an  account  of  an  in- 
cident in  the  Baltimore  Southern  Methodist,  which 
occurred  when  he  was  junior  preacher  and  Dr.  A.  W. 
Wilson  was  his  presiding  elder,  and  which  shows  the 
value  the  Bishop  placed  upon  preaching  at  the  be- 
ginning of  his  ministry,  and  incidentally  reveals  the 
interest  he  had  in  his  younger  brethren. 

Rev.  H.  W.  Kinzer's  interesting  story  is  as  follows : 

171 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


"Bishop  A.  W.  Wilson  was  my  first  presiding  elder  in 
the  Baltimore  Conference. 

"At  the  Conference  held  in  Salem,  Va.,  where  I  joined, 
in  1871,  which  was  presided  over  by  Bishop  Pierce,  I  was 
sent  as  junior  preacher  to  Piedmont  Circuit,  now  called 
Marshall  Circuit,  and  Dr.  Alpheus  W.  Wilson  was  made 
presiding  elder  of  the  Washington  District. 

' '  I  remember  an  amusing  incident  that  occurred  at  the 
first  quarterly  conference  of  my  second  year  on  that  circuit. 

"Under  the  head  of  Miscellaneous  Business,  Dr.  Wilson 
inquired  if  any  provision  had  been  made  for  a  home  for 
the  junior  preacher? 

"One  brother  after  another  responded  by  saying: 
*  Brother  Kinzer  is  welcome  to  my  home  any  time  he  may 
choose  to  come  and  stay  as  long  as  he  pleases. '  Dr. 
Wilson  said:  'That  is  very  generous,  and  kind,  brethren, 
but  a  junior  preacher  needs  some  place  where  he  can  keep 
his  trunk  and  books  and  prepare  his  sermons;  and  can 
think  of  it  as  his  home.  When  I  was  a  junior  preacher  I 
had  no  home,  but  was  expected  to  keep  going  around 
among  the  people  and  I  soon  found  that  I  had  to  decide 
between  two  things — either  to  gain  the  reputation  of  being 
considered  sociable  at  the  cost  of  making  a  preacher,  or 
trying  to  make  a  preacher  of  myself  at  the  cost  of  being 
thought  unsocial.  I  chose  the  latter,  and  so  got  the  repu- 
tation of  being  very  unsocial. " 

"Instantly,  an  old  brother  present,  who  was  affection- 
ately known  among  his  brethren  and  friends  on  the  circuit 
as  '  Bishop '  Diggs,  because  of  his  devotion  to  the  church 
and  its  ministry,  said  in  a  clear,  strong  voice,  without 
meaning  the  slightest  discourtesy:  'You've  got  it  yet, 
sir ! '  The  brethren  broke  out  in  hearty  laughter,  but  Dr. 
Wilson  gave  no  sign  that  he  had  heard  it. 

"There  were  those  who  thought  him  cold  and  lacking 
in  sympathy,  but  it  was  not  so.  No  man  ever  had  a 
warmer  or  more  sympathetic  heart  than  Bishop  Wilson — 
when  you  reached  it. 

"At  the  end  of  my  second  year  on  that  circuit,  when  he 
came  to  our  fourth  quarterly  meeting,  he  and  I  were  taking 
a  walk  when  he  greatly  surprised  me  by  saying :     '  Brother 


172 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Kinzer,  do  you  wish  a  married  man's  appointment  at 
Conference?^  He  had  seen  some  things  that  gave  him  a 
lurking  suspicion  that  I  was  contemplating  an  early  mar- 
riage. I  said  to  him:  'I  have  onh'  been  in  the  Con- 
ference two  years  (though  I  had  doubled  my  work  on  the 
Conference  course,  which  we  were  allowed  to  do  at  that 
time,  and  expected  to  be  ordained  elder  at  the  approaching 
Conference)  and  feel  that  I  scarcely  have  a  right  to  ask  for 
or  expect  a  married  man's  appointment.  You  can  send 
me  where  you  please,  and  if  Providence  should  open  the 
way  for  me  to  marry  during  the  coming  year,  I  may  do  so. ' 
Here  he  showed  a  delicate  and  tender  sympathy  and  a 
knowledge  that  he  knew  how  to  understand  and  appreciate 
the  secret  springs  of  a  brother's  heart." 

Bishop  Wilson  carried  with  him  all  through  life  a 
painful  consciousness  that  he  lacked  the  facility  for 
happily  expressing  himself  when  occasion  required 
the  language  of  the  heart  rather  than  that  of  the 
head.  That  consciousness  embarrassed  him,  and 
was  chiefly  responsible  for  his  not  having  cultivated 
the  habit  of  mingling  more  largely  with  the  people 
socially.  He  often  referred  to  this  source  of  embar- 
rassment in  his  letters. 

Excerpts  from  two  are  given — one  written  near 
the  beginning  of  his  ministry  and  the  other  near  the 
end.  In  a  letter  from  Elk  Ridge,  October  18,  1856, 
he  wrote : 

"Destitute  of  conversational  power,  and  equally  want- 
ing in  epistolary  talent,  topics  that  would  expand  in 
other  hands  into  agreeable  and  interesting  communica- 
tions, or  pleasant  chit-chat,  are  disposed  of  by  me  in  two, 
or  three  concise,  dull  sentences,  awakening  no  pleasurable 
emotions  and  attracting  no  attention.  ...  I  would  like, 
if  I  had  the  time,  to  tn^  to  acquire  the  art  of  making  my- 
self agreeable.  But  the  pursuit  of  the  various  depart- 
ments of  study  required  in  my  vocation,  comprising  the 

173 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


abstruse  investigation  of  metaphysical  theories,  the 
various  branches  of  widely-extended  literary  criticism  and 
ntimberless  other  matters  altogether  without  the  range  of 
topics  of  general  interest,  is  not  at  all  favorable  to  and 
leaves  but  little  time  for  the  cultivation  of  the  more 
familiar  art.  In  addition  to  this  I  am  too  largely  defec- 
tive in  the  qualities  essential  to  a  conversationalist,  and 
letter-writer-imagination  and  fancy  to  admit  of  success  in 
either  department.  So,  if  any  one  makes  inquiry  of  you, 
why  I  am  so  silent  and  reserved,  as  is  often  done  here,  you 
may  give  this  as  the  exposition  of  the  matter. 

"There  is,  however,  one  topic  upon  which  I  find  that  I 
excite  interest  whenever  I  am  called  to  allude  to  it  in 
conversation — that  is,  religion,  with  all  that  appertains  to 
it,  comprising  the  faith,  experience  and  practice  of  the 
Christian  life.  I  often  find  mj^self  in  company  with 
Christians — sometimes  indeed  with  the  irreligious — earn- 
estly enforcing  some  point  of  Scriptural  doctrine,  exper- 
ience, or  conduct;  dwelling  upon  my  own  past  experience, 
or  dilating  upon  the  prospect  of  the  Redeemed;  while  all 
are  apparently  intently  fixed  upon  the  theme  and  deeply 
interested  in  it.  Why  it  is,  I  know  not.  Certainly  not 
because  of  the  talent  displayed  in  the  elucidation  of  such 
subjects.  Rather  I  should  attribute  it  to  the  inherent  in- 
terest of  the  subjects  and  the  earnestness  inseparably  con- 
nected with  their  discussion  in  my  case.  Hence  it  is  my 
endeavor  to  carr>^  into  the  pulpit  the  same  topics.  And 
when  I  can  succeed  in  this  endeavor  I  find  always  more 
earnest  attention  and  more  generally  awakened  interest 
on  the  part  of  my  congregation.  " 

The  other  is  dated  May  4,  1900,  and  was  written 
from  Louisville,  Ky.,  and  shows  that  after  long  years 
this  obsession  of  his  youth  still  held  its  place  in  his 
mind. 

"It  is  always  a  pleasure  to  receive  expressions  of  af- 
fection from  those  whom  we  love,  even  though  we  be 
thoroughly  assured  of  our  place  in  their  hearts,  without 
any  formal  utterance.     It  is,  perhaps,  the  misfortune  of 


174 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


many  of  us — constituted  like  myself— that  we  can  take 
and  appreciate  such  expressions  more  readily  than  we  can 
return  them.  I  have  constantly  regretted  all  my  life  that 
I  was  so  dumb  and  unresponsive  when  occasion  and  my 
own  heart  alike  demanded  recognition  of  love  and  service 
of  which  I  was  consciously  unworth3^  The  highest 
authority  has  said  that  'out  of  the  abundance  of  the  heart 
the  mouth  speaketh. '  It  is,  of  course,  true  in  the  region 
to  which  the  saying  is  more  immediately  applicable.  But 
in  the  relations  of  our  common  life  it  is  quite  as  often  true 
that  the  full  heart  can  find  no  utterance.  " 

Though  the  Bishop's  social  qualities  were  not  re- 
garded generally  as  his  largest  asset,  those  who  were 
fortunate  enough  to  win  his  confidence  and  friend- 
ship found  him  delightful  company.  Bishop  Warren 
A.  Candler,  in  speaking  of  this  side  of  his  nature, 
said: 

"As  may  not  have  been  known  to  some,  he  was  a  most 
charming  man  in  the  social  circle,  provided  it  was  not  a 
circle  filled  with  frivolity  and  the  frivolous.  He  had  no 
gift  for  small  talk,  and  was  mighty  poor  company  for  light- 
headed people;  but  in  a  circle  in  which  intelligence  and 
piety  prevailed,  he  was  mighty  good  company.  Lovable, 
genial,  and  brotherly,  and  withal  possessing  a  delightful 
and  delicate  humor,  he  was  a  man  with  whom  a  sensible 
person  could  spend  a  day  without  taking  account  of  the 
hours. " 

Bishop  E.  E.  Hoss  in  this  connection  has  said: 

' '  There  used  to  be  a  current  report  in  the  Church  that 
he  was  a  man  of  somewhat  chilly  and  repellent  manner. 
But  nothing  could  have  been  less  true.  While  he  was  not 
garrulous  nor  given  to  adulation  he  was  a  most  genial 
companion.  He  loved  to  be  loved,  and  he  gave  himself 
most  unreserv^edly  to  his  friends.  I  count  it  among  the 
great  honors  of  my  life  that  for  many  years  I  was  so  sure 
of  his  good  will  towards  me  that  I  could  approach  him 

175 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


directly  on  any  subject.  There  was  never  a  cloud  nor  a 
mist  between  us.  When  we  parted  for  the  last  time,  only 
a  few  weeks  before  his  death,  I  felt  that  the  kiss  which  he 
left  upon  my  lips  was  nothing  less  than  the  sealing  of  our 
friendship  for  eternity." 

Bishop  Collins  Denny,  who,  on  account  of 
his  intimate  relation  to  Bishop  Wilson,  knew  his 
heart  as  few  men  k;new  it,  has  expressed  his  deeply 
rooted  convictions  in  these  words : 

"Bishop  Wilson  was  misunderstood  by  some  of  our 
people.  He  was  by  no  means  hard  to  approach ;  but  every 
strong  man  in  a  responsible  position  is  open  to  such  misap- 
prehensions. The  same  misapprehensions  are  likely  to 
exist  concerning  ever}^  strong  Bishop  of  the  Church.  No 
man  who  had  any  matter  of  moment  to  bring  to  the  at- 
tention of  Bishop  Wilson  ever  found  him  difficult  to  ap- 
proach. He  was  as  easy  to  approach  as  any  man  I  ever 
knew,  as  attentive  to  what  one  said,  and  as  ready  to  give 
all  that  was  in  him  for  worthy  ends. 

"I  am  not  so  patient  as  perhaps  I  should  be  when  I 
hear  of  suggestions  that  Bishop  Wilson  was  imperialistic 
and  severe.  He  was  a  Christian  gentleman  who  loved 
God  a,nd  his  fellowmen.  He  did  not  carr>'  his  heart  on  his 
sleeve,  nor  did  he  waste  his  s^nnpathy,  but  when  the  call 
came  he  held  back  nothing  of  his  great  nature,  nothing  of 
his  tenderness.  He  was  more  nearly  a  father  to  me  than 
was  any  man  after  the  death  of  my  own  father.  He  was 
with  me  in  my  sorrows,  and  I  was  with  him  in  some  of  the 
many  sorrows  he  had  to  bear.  To  the  suffering  he  was 
tender.  He  was  glad  to  receive  sympathy,  yet  he  took 
his  own  troubles  to  God,  bowing  submissively  imder  the 
heavy  rod  and  making  no  outcry. " 

Though  he  enjoyed  the  conversation  most  when  it 
moved  on  a  high  intellectual  plane,  he  was  not 
averse  to  a  bit  of  pleasantry  now  and  then,  and  was 
never  at  a  disadvantage  in  repartee.     It  is  scarcely 

176 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


necessary  to  say  that  in  repartee  and  in  every  walk  of 
life  he  was  always  a  high-minded  Christian  gentle- 
man. During  the  early  part  of  his  ministry,  when 
his  future  as  a  preacher  did  not  seem  to  be  very 
promising,  an  older  colleague  advised  him  to  give  up 
the  ministry  and  enter  some  other  calling,  adding  in  a 
spirit  in  which  seriousness  and  pleasantry  were  min- 
gled: "You  will  never  learn  to  preach."  The 
young  preacher  retorted  in  the  same  spirit:  "When  I 
have  preached  as  long  as  you  and  can't  preach  any 
better,  IM  try  something  else.  "  The  older  preacher 
lived  to  see  the  man  whom  he  had  chided  a  bishop 
and  one  of  the  greatest  preachers  of  his  day,  and  to 
receive  an  appointment  from  him.  He  had  no 
patience  with  light,  trifling  conversation.  His  calm- 
ness which  nothing  could  disturb,  and  his  ready  wit, 
often  served  him  well  in  presiding  over  Annual  Con- 
ferences. It  is  currently  reported  that  in  a  Con- 
ference down  South  a  preacher  who  had  made  a 
record  for  placing  stumbling-blocks  in  the  way  of 
presiding  bishops  arose  and  made  this  suggestion: 
' '  Mr.  President,  you  have  been  a  bishop  for  twenty- 
odd  years,  and  this  is  your  first  visit  here.  You  will 
probably  never  return.  So,  if  you  wish  to  be  re- 
membered among  us  and  erect  for  yourself  a  living 
monument  I  would  suggest  that  you  send  me  to  the 
District."  The  Bishop  pulled  his  venera- 
ble beard  once  or  twice  and  remarked:  "Brother,  I 
thank  you  for  your  kindly  suggestion,  but  I  have  no 
desire  for  monuments  of  brass.  " 

His  closing  years  were  marked  by  a  mellowness 
and  sweetness  of  spirit  that  threw  a  charm  about  him 
and  made  it  a  benediction  to  be  in  his  presence. 

177 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


On  account  of  his  official  position  the  author  saw 
perhaps  more  of  the  Bishop  during  the  last  three 
years  of  his  life  than  any  one  else  outside  of  his 
family.  More  than  once  when  he  had  left  the 
Bishop's  study  he  felt  that  he  had  been  in  a  hallowed 
place  and  in  a  holy  atmosphere  and  went  forth  into 
the  world  with  a  consciousness  of  a  stronger  grip  on 
unseen  things. 


178 


CHAPTER  XII. 
Honors  and  Unofficial  Events. 

A  mention  of  the  honors  denoting  scholarship  and 
a  brief  record  of  the  unofficial  events  in  the  life  of 
Bishop  Wilson  may  not  be  without  interest  to  the 
readers  of  this  book. 

He  never  sought  or  placed  great  value  upon  hon- 
orary adornments  from  literary  institutions,  for  he 
knew  that  many  titles  were  bestowed  without  proper 
discrimination,  resulting  in  the  impairment  of  the 
significance  of  such  degrees  so  far  as  scholarly  habits 
and  lofty  attainments  are  concerned.  If  a  man  is 
without  ability,  honorary  degrees  are  generally  a 
hindrance  rather  than  a  help.  One  of  his  contem- 
poraries told  the  author  that  soon  after  Rev.  A.  W. 
Wilson  received  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinity,  one 
of  his  friends  facetiously  asked  him  the  meaning  of 
D.D. 

"Double  Dunce,"  was  his  immediate  reply. 

Universities  and  colleges  have  been  quick  to 
recognize  the  truth,  however,  that  they  have  honored 
themselves  by  honoring  him.  The  degree  of  Doctor 
of  Divinity  was  conferred  upon  him  by  Randolph- 
Macon  College  in  1875,  and  a  like  degree  by  Victoria 
University  of  Toronto  in  1911,  during  the  meeting  of 
the  Ecumenical  Conference  in  that  Canadian  city. 

Concerning  the  elaborate  ceremonies  attendant 
upon  the  bestowal  of  this  and  other  degrees  he  wrote 
a  very  entertaining  account.  There  were  about  ten 
persons  who  were  to  be  thus  complimented  on  the 
evening  of  the  Commencement,  and  each  was  ex- 

179 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


pected  to  make  a  five-minute  speech  setting  forth  his 
fitness  for  the  honor.  The  Bishop  wrote  that  in  view 
of  the  number  of  candidates  such  a  thing  was  "no 
small  strain  upon  the  audience."  The  imagina- 
tion is  powerless  to  fancy  Bishop  Wilson  making  that 
sort  of  speech.  He  could  not  laud  himself ;  it  was  not 
in  him.  But  his  remarks  had  an  attractiveness  that 
was  peculiar  to  himself. 

The  degree  of  Doctor  of  Law  was  conferred  upon 
him  by  Central  College  of  Missouri,  and  by  Wash- 
ington and  Lee  University;  by  the  former  in  1884 
and  by  the  latter  in  1885. 

He  was  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of 
Randolph-Macon  College  from  1871  to  the  time  of 
his  death  in  1916,  and  was  President  of  the  Board 
from  1882  to  1896.  He  was  elected  a  trustee  of  the 
American  University  in  1891,  and  a  year  later  was 
made  Vice-Chancellor,  which  office  he  held  to  the 
time  of  his  death. 

There  were  but  few  noteworthy  events  in  Bishop 
Wilson's  unofficial  life,  but  the  few  are  too  important 
to  be  omitted  from  this  study.  As  was  stated  in  a 
previous  chapter  he  cared  little  for  social  life  and 
preferred  the  quiet  of  his  home  with  his  books  and 
wife  and  children.  During  his  last  twenty  years  even 
the  simple  spending  of  an  evening  with  friends  meant 
a  sleepless  night  and  prostration  the  next  day. 
When  he  reached  the  fortieth  anniversary  of  his 
marriage,  however,  he  was  in  far  better  condition 
than  Mrs.  Wilson  expected,  and  he  thought  that  the 
occasion  should  be  celebrated;  so  he  invited  his 
Baltimore  friends  to  spend  the  evening  with  him  and 


180 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


it  proved  so  bright  and  cheerful  an  event  that  he 
said,  "I  mean  to  celebrate  my  Golden  Wedding. " 

When  that  time  had  arrived,  March  4,  1907,  many- 
changes  had  taken  place.  Of  the  friends  who  had 
been  present  ten  years  previously,  thirty  had  pre- 
ceded them  over  Jordan's  dark  and  stormy  flood. 
That  made  a  difference;  they  began  to  feel  lonely, 
since  few  old  friends  were  left.  Mrs.  Wilson's 
health  was  poor,  and  Bishop  Wilson  had  gone  through 
many  severe  illnesses.  They  were  no  longer  strong 
enough  to  carry  through  the  arrangements,  which 
were  necessarily  left  in  the  hands  of  their  daughter. 
This  led  the  Bishop  to  say  several  times  when  he  was 
questioned  about  plans,  "Nina  knows — it  is  Nina's 
Golden  Wedding,"  which  jest  he  always  repeated 
with  quiet  enjoyment  when  that  celebration  was  re- 
ferred to.  But  the  completion  of  half  a  century  of 
married  life  is  no  small  event ;  and  though  many  dear 
faces  were  absent,  and  though  the  Bishop  and  Mrs. 
Wilson  were  not  unconscious  of  their  own  advancing 
years,  they  got  much  pleasure  out  of  the  event. 
Their  friends,  mostly  of  a  younger  generation,  were 
truly  kind  and  thoughtful.  The  house  was  filled  with 
flowers;  gifts  poured  in — of  all  sorts — silver,  gold, 
porcelain,  glass;  the  preachers  sent  a  purse  of  gold, 
and  several  friends  sent  their  congratulations  in  the 
form  of  poems.  The  Bishops  sent  a  gold-lined  silver 
bowl  which  was  a  highly  appreciated  treasure.  The 
marriage  had  been  according  to  the  pretty  old- 
fashioned  custom ;  four  bridesmaids  and  four  grooms- 
men, with  the  bride's  father  to  perform  the  ceremony 
in  his  own  parlor,  and  as  many  friends  as  possible  to 
witness  it.     Two  bridesmaids  were  present  on  the 

181 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


anniversary,  Bishop  Wilson's  sister  Augusta,  and 
Mrs.  Wilson's  sister  Mary,  now  Mrs.  Thomas  Fitz- 
gerald. Another  still  living  was  prevented  from 
being  with  them.  The  Rev.  P.  D.  Lipscomb,  his 
wife  and  all  the  groomsmen  Rev.  J.  Newman  Hank, 
Rev.  B.  Peyton  Brown,  Rev.  Theodore  M.  Carson, 
and  Rev.  E.  H.  Wilson  had  long  been  dead. 

Bishop  Wilson  looked  well  and  enjoyed  the  even- 
ing, even  though  it  was  evident  he  often  thought  of 
friends  whom  he  would  naturally  have  expected  to 
see  had  they  not  been  in  the  world  of  spirits.  It  was 
more  a  season  of  reminiscense  to  him  than  a  social 
hour.  Mrs.  Wilson  was  already  ill,  though  not 
definitely  aware  of  it ;  she  looked  very  white  and  frail, 
but  made  a  brave  effort  not  to  show  how  she  felt. 
It  seemed  like  a  brilliant  sunset  hour,  before  the 
twilight  and  night  came  on.  The  next  morning  they 
started  for  San  Francisco,  and  thence  they  sailed  in  a 
few  days  for  China,  the  last  earthly  journey  they  ever 
took  together. 

In  Bishop  Wilson's  family,  birthdays  were  always 
marked,  generally  by  gifts  and  a  special  dinner — 
anything  to  add  brightness  to  the  idea  that  each 
member  had  added  something  to  the  world  by  com- 
ing. His  birthday,  February  fifth,  was  always  cele- 
brated. For  several  years  it  was  Mrs.  Wilson's 
pleasure  to  invite  the  preachers  of  his  Church  residing 
in  Baltimore  to  spend  the  evening  with  him.  The 
talk  on  such  occasions  was  good  to  hear;  a  group  of 
Methodist  ministers  always  have  something  to  say 
and  at  such  times  are  at  their  best.  The  family  en- 
joyed these  functions  highly.  On  one  of  these  oc- 
casions the  brethren  decided  to  mark  the  day  by  a 


182 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


present.  A  set  of  beautiful  plates  was  chosen,  and 
the  late  Rev.  Dr.  J.  H.  DuLaney  was  selected  to 
present  them.  He  made  a  charming  little  speech 
and  ended  by  giving  the  plates  to  Mrs.  Wilson,  to  the 
great  amusement  of  all,  because  as  he  said  she  was 
the  housekeeper. 

Another  time  the  brethren  asked  Bishop  Wilson 
to  celebrate  his  birthday  by  giving  them  a  series  of 
studies  in  Romans.  This  was  much  to  his  taste,  and 
on  his  birthday,  and  on  a  day  for  several  successive 
weeks  a  number  of  ministers  gathered  in  his  study 
and  he  talked  on  each  occasion  for  an  hour  or  so, 
encouraging  interruptions  in  the  shape  of  questions 
and  arguments.  He  enjoyed  the  hours  very  much, 
and  doubtless  the  ministers  present  found  them  ex- 
ceedingly profitable.  But  each  succeeding  year 
found  him  weaker  physically.  He  grew  too  feeble  to  go 
downstairs  regularly  to  meals ;  and  after  while  only  a 
dinner  party  for  the  family  living  in  the  city  cele- 
brated the  day,  but  he  liked  it  to  be  held,  even  when 
he  was  not  at  the  table. 

When  the  eightieth  birthday  approached,  the 
pastor  of  the  family.  Rev.  John  Paul  Tyler,  con- 
ceived the  idea  of  making  it  a  general  celebration. 
Mr.  Tyler  spared  no  pains  to  make  a  suitable  obser- 
vance, and  it  developed  into  a  beautiful  occasion. 
Trinity  Church  was  decorated,  and  at  eight  o'clock 
a  reception  was  held,  attended  by  the  preachers  of  the 
three  Methodisms  in  Baltimore,  and  by  personal  friends 
from  Washington  and  Virginia.  Refreshments  were 
served,  and  speeches  were  delivered.  Among  others 
Bishops  Denny  and  Kilgo  who  had  come  to  Balti- 
timore   expressly  for  the   occasion,   paid   deserved 


183 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


tributes  to  their  colleague;  Dr.  Tagg  of  the  Methodist 
Protestant  Church,  and  Dr.  St.  Clair  Neal  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  made  addresses  and 
Revs.  E.  V.  Regester  and  F.  J.  Prettyman  of  his  own 
Church  gave  delightful  talks  on  Bishop  Wilson's 
work  and  personal  relation  to  the  men  of  his  former 
Conference.  It  was  a  gathering  the  like  of  which  is 
rarely  seen,  and  gave  great  pleasure  to  Bishop  Wil- 
son. Letters  and  telegrams  had  poured  in  all  during 
the  day;  too  many  in  number  to  repeat  here.  But 
one  telegram  deserves  to  be  preserved,  on  account  of 
the  reference  to  his  father. 

"Winchester,  Virginia,  February  5,  1914. 
"Bishop  Alpheus  W.  Wilson. 

"Allow  me  to  present  you  my  congratulations  upon 
your  eightieth  birthday.  My  father,  who  knew  and 
loved  your  father,  joins  me  in  good  wishes.  In  Winchester 
where  your  father  lived  and  labored  so  many  years  his 
name  is  always  associated  with  yours;  indeed,  I  may  say 
that  the  memory  of  his  saintly  life  somewhat  overshadows 
the  achievements  of  his  son.  This  is  not  displeasing  to 
you.  I  am  sure,  today,  when  the  Churches  are  celebrating 
your  birthday  you  will  be  glad  to  know  that  an  old  friend 
in  Winchester  has  placed  a  little  spray  of  blossoms  on  his 
grave. 

Wm.  G.  Hardy." 

This  reference  to  his  father,  whom  he  deeply 
revered  and  loved,  was  most  prized  by  Bishop  Wilson, 
who  always  said  his  father  was  a  magnificent 
preacher,  to  whose  sermons  his  own  did  not  compare. 

Bishop  Wilson  enjoyed  this  celebration  greatly, 
but  said  if  he  had  known  it  was  contemplated,  he 
would  not  have  allowed  it.  "Such  things  should 
never  be  said  of  a  man  until  he  is  dead!"  was  his 
remark,  when  it  was  over. 

184 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


In  October,  1915,  during  the  pastorate  of  Rev. 
Joseph  H.  Balthis,  the  half-century  of  Trinity  Church 
was  observed.     As  the  edifice  had  been  built  chiefly 
through  the  efforts  of  Bishop  Wilson,  and  as  he  had 
been  the  Church's  first  pastor,  he  was  glad  to  take 
part  in  the  celebration.     Four  services  were  held 
during  the  week  beginning  Sunday,  October  24,  when 
he  preached  the  semi-centennial  sermon.     A  banquet 
was  held  one  evening  in  the  basement  of  the  church, 
at  which  a  prayer  of  thanksgiving  for  Trinity's  work 
was  offered  by  Rev.  I.  W.  Canter,  D.  D.,  one  of  our 
veteran  ministers,  and  speeches  were  made  on  dif- 
ferent departments  of  the  church  by  the  members  of 
Trinity,  and  by  the  few  who  could  recall  the  organi- 
zation of  the  Church.     Bishop  Wilson's  talk  was 
necessarily  brief,  but  it  abounded  in  facts  relating  to 
Trinity's  history.     In  fifteen  minutes  he  reviewed  the 
inception  and  development  of  Trinity;  what  it  had 
done  as  a  Church  to  help  the  Churches  of  the  South, 
which  had  been  wrecked  by  the  war;  and  what  the 
early  membership  had  striven  against  and  overcome. 
An  historical  paper  recalling  the  important  happen- 
ings in  the  Church's  life,  prepared  by  the  pastor,  was 
one  of  the  features  of  the  program.     Another  evening 
of  the  same  week  Bishop  Wilson  made  a  more  formal 
speech,  on  the  history  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,   South,   its  formation,   and  the  conditions 
under  which  it  originated  in  Baltimore.     The  Rev. 
Forrest  J.  Prettyman,  D.  D.,  a  former  pastor  of  the 
Church,  and  Honorable  Josephus  Daniels,  the  Secre- 
tary of  the  Navy,  a  warm  friend  of  Bishop  Wilson, 
were  also  speakers  of  the  evening;  and  by  the  law  of 
association  of  ideas  their  remarks  had  a  trend  of 


185 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


eulogy  in  relation  to  the  Bishop.  But  it  was  not 
strange,  for  the  life  of  Bishop  Wilson  had  so  colored 
that  of  Trinity  that  it  was  difficult  to  speak  of  one 
without  the  other. 

On  July  2,  1889,  Bishop  Wilson  met  with  the  only 
accident  of  all  his  travels.  He  was  returning  from 
Dalton,  Georgia,  and  it  was  raining  heavily.  A 
culvert  on  the  Norfolk  and  Western  Railroad,  near 
Thaxton,  Virginia,  which  was  reached  about  two 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  had  been  washed  away,  and 
the  train  fell  through.  The  car  in  which  he  was 
sleeping  broke  in  half,  the  rear  half  hanging  over  the 
guUy,  while  the  front  end  went  down.  Five  pas- 
sengers were  killed.  Bishop  Wilson  woke  suddenly 
with  the  consciousness  of  falling  but  did  not  feel  the 
impact  of  the  fall.  Mrs.  Wilson  was  always  fond  of 
associating  the  fact  of  his  not  having  been  killed  with 
the  scripture,  "He  shall  give  his  angels  charge  over 
thee."  The  train  caught  fire,  and  the  usual  horror 
of  such  an  accident  was  added  to  this  disaster.  In 
the  dark  he  could  not  see  the  extent  of  the  wreck;  he 
crawled  out  of  the  debris,  lay  quietly  in  the  mud  and 
rain  all  night,  but  escaped  any  serious  injury.  He 
must  have  struck  his  hip,  for  it  was  so  deeply  bruised 
that  a  large  carbuncle  formed  during  the  following 
month.  In  the  early  morning,  a  relief  train  carried 
him  with  the  other  survivors  back  to  Roanoke. 
When  he  went  into  the  hotel  lobby,  he  was  so  covered 
with  mud,  that  a  friend  standing  by  did  not  recog- 
nize him. 

Dr.  CoUins  Denny,  then  stationed  at  Salem,  was 
sent  for,  and  accompanied  him  home  the  next  day. 
His  right  hand  had  a  large  splinter  about  the  size  of  a 


186 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


match,  run  through  the  palm.  This  had  to  be  re- 
moved, and  as  the  process  promised  to  be  painful 
chloroform  was  suggested,  but  he  declined  anything 
in  the  shape  of  an  anodyne  saying,  "If  I  can  have  a 
good  cigar,  I'll  not  be  a  trouble  to  the  doctor.  "  He 
bore  the  cutting  and  the  sewing  with  an  occasional 
wincing.  He  never  wrote  with  ease  afterward;  and 
the  hand  grew  more  and  more  stiff,  so  that  letters 
were  reduced  to  the  shortest  possible  length.  It  was 
remarkable,  however,  how  well  he  came  off,  in  such  a 
catastrophe.  Frail  as  he  was  he  might  have  had 
pneumonia  from  exposure  in  the  rain,  but  he  escaped 
and  not  even  a  bone  was  broken. 

He  lost  all  his  clothing,  and  a  dearly  prized  Greek 
Testament,  given  him  about  1870  by  his  old  friend 
Dr.  J.  Asbury  Morgan.  These  two  used  to  meet 
every  Tuesday  night  for  years  at  each  other's  house, 
to  read  the  Greek;  and  it  was  likely  that  Bishop 
Wilson's  habit  of  reading  his  Greek  Testament 
regularly,  four  chapters  daily,  began  in  this  custom. 
He  lost  his  watch  also,  which  was  replaced  by  some 
of  his  brethren  of  the  Baltimore  Conference,  and 
some  other  personal  belongings.  It  seemed  for 
years  he  would  recollect  and  want  something  "lost 
at  Thaxton."  Though  he  had  suffered  the  loss  of 
some  prized  belongings  his  was  a  remarkable  deliver- 
ance, which  did  not  fail  to  fill  him  with  gratitude  for 
his  preservation. 

In  1901,  the  first  great  missionary  conference  of 
his  Church  was  held  in  New  Orleans.  Bishop  Wil- 
son, with  Mrs.  Wilson,  had  arrived  at  San  Francisco 
from  a  visit  to  China,  just  in  time  to  make  the  jour- 
ney  to   New   Orleans.     The   bubonic   plague   had 


187 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


broken  out  in  the  Chinese  quarter  of  San  Francisco, 
and  Texas  had  quarantined  against  that  city.  Not 
knowing  this,  Bishop  and  Mrs.  Wilson  secured  their 
tickets  and  started  for  New  Orleans.  At  the  Texas 
border  as  they  had  no  physician's  certificate,  they 
were  turned  back.  They  decided  to  go  to  St.  Louis, 
and  see  if  they  could  reach  New  Orleans  that  way. 
They  found  that  route  practicable,  but  the  Bishop 
was  late  and  missed  his  part  on  the  program.  After 
a  warm  reception  from  the  whole  Conference,  some- 
body asked  if  he  had  heard  that  the  train  on  which 
he  had  reached  the  Texas  border  had  been  wrecked, 
and  nearly  a  hundred  people  killed?  He  had  not 
heard  it,  but  realized  anew  what  he  had  always  felt, 
that  God  had  him  in  His  keeping. 


188 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

The  Fall  of  the  Earthly  Temple. 

And,  like  the  baseless  fabric  of  a  vision, 
The  cloud-capp'd  towers,  the  gorgeous  palaces, 
The  solemn  temples,  the  great  globe  itself, 
Yea,  all  which  it  inherit,  shall  dissolve; 
And,  like  this  insubstantial  pageant  faded, 
Leave  not  a  rack  behind. — The  Tempest. 

As  the  clock  in  his  study  struck  eight  on  Tuesday 
morning,  November  21,  1916,  the  tired  heart  of 
Alpheus  Waters  Wilson  stood  still  and  the  work  of 
his  massive  intellect  was  at  an  earthly  end.  Thus 
passed  to  the  heavenly  world  from  the  room  in  which 
his  profoundest  thinking  had  been  done,  a  man  who 
for  years  had  been  a  colossal  figure  in  American 
Methodism  and  who  is  considered  by  many  compe- 
tent judges  to  have  been  the  greatest  preacher  of  his 
generation. 

No  one,  least  of  all  himself,  ever  thought  that  he 
would  reach  the  ripe  old  age  of  more  than  four-score 
years,  for  his  health  had  not  been  good  from  his  boy- 
hood. Two  young  sisters  died  of  tuberculosis  of  the 
lungs;  and  his  father.  Rev.  Norval  Wilson,  had  a 
siege  of  hemorrhages  lasting  about  five  years.  The 
lung  healed,  but  he  was  never  robust  again. 

Bishop  Wilson  was  subject  to  heavy  colds, 
frequently  resulting  in  bronchitis;  and  even  before 
definite  mischief  developed,  he  had  to  struggle 
against  weakness  and  languor.  After  preaching  he 
was  always  prostrated;  unable  to  eat  for  hours,  and 
rarely  able  to  sleep  at  night.     In  1864  he  went  north 

189 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


for  a  change,  and  consiilted  a  physician  in  New  York, 
who  assured  him  his  lungs  were  in  a  critical  condi- 
tion, and  gave  him  slight  hope  of  a  long  life,  even  if 
he  could  use  the  care  necessary.  In  1869,  he  had  an 
attack  of  pneumonia;  and  while  he  seemed  to  re- 
cover, it  is  from  that  time  that  the  condition  of  his 
last  twelve  years  dates.  His  nerves  also  seemed  in- 
volved; and  he  was  one  who  quickly  developed  ail- 
ments now  called  infections.  Pain  of  exquisite 
nature  usually  attended  his  illness.  And  it  was 
during  such  trials  that,  to  his  family,  his  lofty  char- 
acter showed  its  deeply  religious  quality  most  in- 
tensely. One  or  two  special  sieges  stand  out;  in  1884 
he  had  an  attack  of  typhoid  malaria;  after  which  in- 
flammation of  periosteum  set  in — anguish  so  intense 
that  opiates  and  narcotics  failed  entirely,  and  there 
was  a  period  of  eight  or  nine  weeks  when  loss  of  sleep 
from  suffering  caused  delirium.  It  is  no  small  mark 
of  self-control  that  not  one  word  of  impatience  or 
irritability  was  ever  heard  from  him  during  those 
seven  long  months  of  illness  and  pain. 

For  the  four  years  he  served  the  Board  of  Mis- 
sions, and  part  of  the  first  decade  after  he  was 
elected  Bishop,  he  seemed  to  improve,  from  constant 
change  of  air  and  scene.  But  soon  his  old  tendencies 
began  to  show  themselves  again.  His  was  a  busy 
life.  He  had  no  time  to  be  sick.  But  time  after  time 
on  the  eve  of  important  engagements  he  was  too  ill 
to  meet  them.  He  fought  against  it ;  would  often  go 
when  unable  to  do  so;  once  in  answer  to  a  remon- 
strance from  his  daughter  he  said,  "It  would  be 
worth  while  to  die,  if  that  is  the  result,  for  my  Mas- 
ter's work."     He  could  brace  himself  up  tremen- 


190 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


dously  at  times,  for  a  short  while.  More  than  once 
he  preached  while  suffering  untold  agony ;  and  would 
say  afterwards,  "It  was  worth  the  pain."  He  did 
not  like  to  admit  that  he  was  ill ;  always  made  light  of 
it  to  outsiders,  and  only  his  family  knew  how  intense 
was  the  pain  he  bore,  in  most  of  the  illnesses  that 
afflicted  him. 

Bronchitis  nearly  always  came,  once  a  year,  from 
about  1894  to  the  year  of  his  death.  His  various 
other  ailments  began  about  that  time  to  appear  more 
frequently — ten  times  he  had  erysipelas.  He  was 
twice  extremely  ill  in  China,  and  during  the  last  visit 
to  Japan  in  1908  he  was  extremely  ill  several  times. 
The  death  of  Mrs.  Wilson  after  her  long  illness  had  a 
serious  effect  on  him,  and  the  next  year,  beginning  in 
January,  1909,  came  the  long  attack  with  what  the 
X-ray  showed  to  be  a  pinched  nerve.  The  exhaus- 
tion from  long  pain,  with  prostration  for  want  of 
sleep  and  inability  to  eat,  apparently  roused  the 
affected  lung  into  activity ;  and  from  that  time  Bishop 
Wilson's  life  seemed  hung  by  a  thread.  He  never 
recuperated,  for  more  than  two  or  three  weeks.  His 
weakness  was  excessive.  The  least  exertion  of  hand 
or  arms  aggravated  the  asthma,  and  often  he  was  too 
feeble  to  feed  himself !  Think  of  a  man  in  that  state 
of  prostration  still  traveling!  He  felt  his  work  a 
solemn  call,  loved  it,  loved  to  preach,  and  to  meet 
his  brethren,  and  made  strenuous  effort  to  go  when- 
ever there  was  a  duty  to  be  performed.  Twice  in  the 
last  ten  years  of  his  life  he  went  to  the  railroad 
station  and  came  home  because  he  realized  that  his 
condition  was  such  he  could  not  improve  in  time  to 
do  the  work  demanded  of  him.     He  felt  very  keenly 


191 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


this  inability ;  but  took  great  pleasure  in  the  assurance 
of  his  colleagues  that  they  would  gladly  assist  him 
and  take  care  of  him  whenever  he  could  manage  to 
get  to  their  meetings  or  to  his  Conferences.  More 
kindness  and  attention  from  the  Bishops,  one  and  all, 
could  not  have  been  given.  Indeed,  friends  all  over 
the  Church  lavished  most  tender  love  and  kindness 
upon  him  in  these  attacks  so  frequent  when  avv^ay 
from  home. 

While  the  failure  was  gradual,  it  was  definite 
through  the  years  from  1909  to  1914.  But  from  the 
summer  of  1914  it  was  more  marked.  He  counted 
on  the  summers  north  for  many  years  to  find  vigor 
and  strength;  but  when  1915  came,  he  found  he 
could  not  leave  home;  the  service  of  his  daughter 
could  not  be  dispensed  with.  The  next  year,  1916, 
both  winter  and  summer  he  had  fewer  acute  attacks ; 
but  notwithstanding  he  steadily  lost  ground.  In 
August  he  met  at  Tate  Springs  the  Commission  on 
Federation  to  complete  the  number.  He  had  ar- 
ranged to  go  to  Lake  Junaluska  from  there,  but  was 
not  able.  He  came  home,  deeply  depressed,  which 
was  unusual  with  him;  and  said  "I  wish  I  had  not 
been  placed  on  the  Commission.  I  am  not  able  to 
do  the  work.  But  I  felt  I  could  not  refuse,  I  have 
never  refused  to  do  anything  my  Church  has  laid  on 
me. "  His  feelings  never  changed ;  he  must  have  had 
a  forecast  of  the  end. 

In  October  he  went  to  Salisbury,  Maryland,  to 
visit  a  close  friend.  He  preached  on  the  Sunday; 
but  was  not  strong  enough  to  leave  his  room  more 
than  twice  or  thrice  afterwards.     Yet  he  left  home 


192 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


nine  days  later,  and  was  away  four  weeks,  returning 
only  in  time  to  die. 

From  October  26-28  he  was  with  his  colleagues  in 
their  fall  meeting  in  Atlanta.  From  Atlanta  he  went 
to  Birmingham  and  spent  several  days  with  friends. 
From  November  1-6  in  response  to  a  pressing  invita- 
tion, he  was  with  Bishop  Denny  at  the  North 
Alabama  Conference,  where  he  made  the  address  to 
the  class  admitted  into  full  connection,  and  on  Sun- 
day morning  preached  a  great  sermon  at  the  High- 
lands Church,  Birmingham. 

From  Birmingham  he  journeyed  to  Greenwood, 
South  Carolina,  where  he  enjoyed  a  week  with  his 
friends  of  long  standing.  Dr.  and  Mrs.  John  O. 
Willson,  at  Lander  College.  On  Sunday,  October  12, 
he  preached  his  last  sermon  on  earth  in  the  church  at 
Greenwood.  The  next  day  he  went  to  Richmond  to 
be  present  by  invitation  at  the  sessions  of  the  Vir- 
ginia Conference.  Bishop  Kilgo,  the  president  of 
the  Conference,  and  he  were  fellow  guests  of  Mrs. 
Collins  Denny,  Bishop  Denny  being  absent  on 
episcopal  duties.  He  told  Mrs.  Denny  he  had  been 
sick  in  the  night  on  the  train.  She  put  him  to  bed 
and  ministered  to  him,  not  thinking  him  worse  than 
she  had  seen  him  many  times. 

He  quickly  rallied  and  attended  the  Conference 
until  Saturday  at  noon  November  18,  when  he  be- 
came too  ill  for  further  attendance  and  for  the  special 
service  he  had  promised  to  render.  The  last  hymn 
he  ever  heard  was  one  of  the  old  songs  of  Zion  which 
speak  with  irresistible  power  to  the  soul  that  is  in 
constant  communion  with  God.  It  was  sung  on  that 
Saturday  morning  at  the  close  of  the  morning  ses- 


193 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


sion  of  the  Conference,  and  was  prophetically 
significant  in  its  relation  to  Bishop  Wilson,  for  in  the 
language  of  Bishop  Kilgo,  "the  heavenly  hosts  were 
invisibly  gathered  around  him."  It  was  Bishop 
Marvin's  favorite: 

My  latest  sun  is  sinking  fast, 

My  race  is  nearly  run, 
My  strongest  trials  now  are  past, 
My  triumph  is  begim. 
O  come,  angel  band,  come  and  around  me  stand; 
O  bear  me  away  on  yoiu"  snowy  wings  to  my  immortal 
home. 

The  details  of  the  Bishop's  last  week  on  earth  are 
given  in  a  personal  letter  to  Miss  Nina  Wilson  from 
Bishop  Denny's  daughter,  Mrs.  Edith  White,  the 
wife  of  Rev.  Roscoe  White.  The  author  takes  the 
liberty  of  publishing  this  letter,  warm  with  sympa- 
thy and  love,  which  was  written  in  the  shadow  of  the 
great  sorrow,  for  he  knows  that  the  many  friends  of 
the  late  Bishop  are  eager  to  know  everything  that 
took  place  in  his  last  not-uneventful  week. 

"Richmond,  Virginia,  Tuesday,  Nov.  21,  1916. 
"Dear  Miss  Nina: 

How  my  heart  goes  out  to  you  in  a  great  sympathy, 
and  how  little  able  I  feel  equal  to  writing  you  what  I 
should  like  to  say.  I  loved  Bishop  Wilson  as  I  loved  my 
own  dear  grandfather,  his  presence  in  our  home  these  past 
few  days  has  been  a  benediction,  and  it  has  been  our  dear 
delight  to  wait  on  him.  I  thought  it  might  be  a  comfort 
to  you  for  me  to  write  you  some  of  the  details  of  his  stay 
with  us;  when  I  put  myself  in  your  place  it  is  what  I 
should  like. 

"  He  reached  here  Tuesday  morning  and  spent  the  day 
upstairs  in  his  own  room.  He  did  not  seem  very  ex- 
hausted after  his  trip,  and  as  always  was  interested  in  the 

194 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


family  news  we  had  to  tell  him.  He  came  down  stairs  for 
dinner  Tuesday,  Wednesday,  Thursday  and  Friday 
nights,  and  after  dinner  would  sit  for  a  while  in  the  library 
with  us.  About  ten  thirty  every  morning  Dr.  Potts  came 
by  for  him  in  a  machine  and  he  went  to  Conference. 
Friday  night  Governor  Stuart  and  Judge  Kelly  were  here 
for  dinner.  Bishop  Wilson  talked  of  a  number  of  Chiirch 
matters.  The  guests  did  not  stay  very  late,  and  Bishop 
Wilson  went  right  up  stairs  after  they  left.  Shortly  after 
that  I  had  to  go  up  to  put  Denny  in  bed  and  I  went  into 
Bishop  Wilson's  room  to  see  what  I  coiild  do  for  him.  He 
seemed  to  be  having  more  difficulty  than  usual  in  getting 
his  breath,  and  told  me,  for  the  first  time  in  a  month  he 
had  just  taken  a  dose  of  morphine.  I  got  him  some  water. 
I  recollect  now,  it  was  Saturday  night  he  took  the  medicine, 
for  we  sent  for  Dr.  Harrison.  Dr.  Harrison  said  it  would 
not  be  wise  for  Bishop  Wilson  to  try  to  preach  Sunday 
morning.  Bishop  Wilson  went  to  Conference  Saturday 
morning,  but  he  did  not  come  down  to  dinner  Saturday 
evening.  In  fact,  I  think  he  did  not  come  down  again 
until  he  left. 

"Bishop  Wilson  seemed  so  appreciative  of  the  least 
little  thing  we  would  do  for  him.  Saturday  morning  be- 
fore he  went  to  Conference  I  put  on  and  laced  up  his  shoes 
for  him,  and  he  told  me  then  he  was  having  more  difficulty 
than  usual  in  getting  his  breath.  His  room  communicated 
with  Bishop  Kilgo's  room,  and  Bishop  Kilgo  and  Roscoe 
helped  him  every  morning  and  evening.  When  Bishop 
Kilgo  came  down  to  breakfast  Sunday  morning,  he  told  us 
that  Bishop  Wilson  was  not  so  well.  I  took  his  breakfast 
up  each  morning.  Monday  morning  he  said  he  did  not 
feel  equal  to  eating  much,  but  for  me  to  butter  him  a 
biscuit.  I  did  that  for  him.  Then  he  told  me  I  might 
butter  the  other  two  biscuits  and  put  them  in  his  overcoat 
pocket,  that  he  would  eat  them  on  the  train  for  limch 
before  reaching  Baltimore.  I  wanted  to  prepare  a  regular 
lunch  but  he  said  he  did  not  care  for  it ;  he  said :  '  If  I 
take  the  biscuit  that  will  be  all  I  need,  for  Nina  may  not 
have  any  one  there  to  help  her  when  I  reach  home. '  He 
spoke  of  you  a  number  of  times  with  great  affection,  and 


195 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


one  evening  told  Mamma  and  Lucy  that  you  were  the  most 
unselfish  woman  he  knew.  I  asked  him  Monday  morning 
if  he  felt  equal  to  making  the  trip,  and  he  replied  that  he 
felt  he  had  better  get  home.  When  he  got  down  stairs  and 
was  waiting  for  the  machine  he  took  a  big  red  apple  out  of 
his  pocket  and  told  Lucy  '  Give  this  to  Edith  and  tell  her 
to  fix  it  for  Denny. '  Sunday  night  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Frank 
Day  were  here  for  supper  and  after  supper  Bishop  Wilson 
had  quite  a  little  talk  with  them  in  his  room. 

"We  have  sent  a  telegram  to  Papa,  he  is  in  Florida. 
If  the  message  reaches  him  promptly  he  may  be  able  to 
reach  Richmond  or  Baltimore  tomorrow  evening. 

"I  am  so  thankful  that  Bishop  Wilson  reached  home. 
Bishop  Kilgo  and  all  of  us  here  send  you  our  love.  We  are 
praying  for  you,  our  hearts  are  full.  Siirely  on  high  this 
day  there  must  be  great  rejoicing,  for  he  is  with  his  Lord. " 

Mrs.  White  omitted  to  mention  the  fact  that  on 
Stmday  Bishop  Wilson  asked  her  husband  to  sit  with 
him,  as  he  "felt  a  little  nervous."  He  had  never 
said  such  a  thing  before,  and  this  was  evidently  a 
sign  that  he  w^as  conscious  of  unusual  prostration  and 
felt  that  the  breaking  down  was  at  hand. 

On  Monday  a  number  went  to  the  railroad  station 
to  see  him  start  home.  He  was  so  weak  that  they 
begged  him  to  allow  some  one  to  travel  with  him. 
He  would  not  consent,  saying  the  porter  could  do  all 
he  required. 

His  train  arrived  in  Baltimore  at  half-past  four. 
Some  time  in  the  journey  he  grew  worse.  He  was 
not  met  at  the  station,  as  he  had  not  said  what  road 
he  would  take,  or  what  time  he  was  due.  But  when 
his  cab  drew  up  at  his  residence,  and  the  chauffeur  had 
to  help  him  from  the  cab  to  the  house,  it  was  evident 
he  was  extremely  ill.  He  sat  down  on  a  chair  at  the 
parlor  door,  to  rest;  but  his  loud  breathing  did  not 

196 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


abate.  In  a  moment  or  two  liis  daughter  went  out 
doors  to  get  help  to  take  him  upstairs.  He  was 
unable  to  stand  long  enough  to  have  coats  and  hat 
removed  but  fell  into  his  chair  at  once. 

His  grand-daughter,  a  trained  nurse,  called  for  his 
physician.  Doctor  Henry  F.  Hill,  and  then  began 
various  preparations  to  make  him  comfortable.  He 
had  a  hard  chiU  lasting  ten  minutes  perhaps,  after 
which  his  mind  wandered  a  little.  This  soon  passed 
away,  but  speech  was  very  difficult.  He  tried  to  tell 
his  daughter  everything  he  thought  would  interest 
her  about  the  people  he  had  met.  Conference  hap- 
penings, and  as  she  was  his  Treasurer,  to  explain 
about  the  moneys  in  his  purse. 

He  noted  family  affairs  and  asked  if  the  study 
paper  was  new — confusing  it  with  another  room 
which  had  been  papered.  At  half  past  eleven,  he 
asked  his  niece,  who  was  sitting  by  the  bed,  for  a 
pipe — said  his  throat  was  so  dry  he  needed  it.  She 
had  long  been  deaf,  and  looking  at  her  tenderly,  he 
said  to  his  daughter,  "How  I  wish  she  could  hear." 
This  was  his  last  remark,  except  in  answer  to  direct 
questions.  Later  his  daughter  said  to  him,  "I 
think  you  must  know  how  very  ill  you  are."  Not 
very  quickly,  but  calmly,  he  replied,  "Yes."  A 
little  later  she  inquired,  "Is  there  anything  you 
want?"  He  answered  without  opening  his  eyes, 
' '  Nothing  you  can  do  for  me. ' ' 

At  eight  o'clock  in  the  morning,  surrounded  by 
his  three  daughters,  his  granddaughter,  and  two 
nieces,  in  the  room  that  had  been  his  study  for  many, 
many  years,  he  departed  for  the  "Better  Country." 


197 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


He  was  greatly  attached  to  his  nephews  and 
nieces,  and  the  nieces  who  were  present,  together 
with  his  daughters,  counted  it  a  special  privilege  that 
he  was  at  home  when  the  end  came. 

The  news  of  his  death  produced  a  profound  sensa- 
tion throughout  the  Church.  Messages  of  love  and  sym- 
pathy came  from  all  sections  to  the  stricken  family,  not 
only  from  our  own  people  but  from  the  friends  and  ad- 
mirers of  the  fallen  chieftain  in  other  Churches.  The 
feeling  in  our  own  Church  was  that  of  Elisha  when 
upon  witnessing  the  translation  of  Elijah  he  cried: 
' '  My  father,  my  father,  the  chariot  of  Israel,  and  the 
horsemen  thereof. " 

His  funeral  services  were  held  in  Trinity  Church, 
on  Thursday  afternoon,  November  23,  at  two  o'clock. 
It  was  the  great  regret  of  the  family  and  intimate 
friends  of  the  Bishop  that  some  of  those  who  were 
closest  and  dearest  to  him  in  personal  and  official 
relations,  associates  in  the  College  of  Bishops  and 
others  could  not  reach  Baltimore  in  time  to  speak 
beside  his  bier,  for  it  was  felt  that  the  tributes  these 
who  had  been  bound  to  him  by  such  tender  and  in- 
timate ties  could  have  given  to  his  life  would  have 
been  just  the  interpretation  the  great  Bishop  would 
have  desired.  While  grateful  for  the  loving  trib- 
utes of  those  who  spoke,  his  family  and  his  friends 
were  naturally  grieved  on  account  of  the  unavoid- 
able absence  of  others. 

Notwithstanding  the  falling  rain  the  church  was 
crowded  with  a  vast  concourse  of  people,  including 
Dr.  Thos.  N.  Ivey,  editor  of  the  Nashville  Christian 
Advocate,  Dr.  E.  H.  Rawlings,  Secretary  of  the  De- 
partment of  Foreign  Missions,  and  Dr.  Charles  D. 


198 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Bulla,  Corresponding  Secretary  of  the  Sunday  School 
Board,  connectional  men  of  Nashville;  a  delegation 
from  the  Virginia  Conference;  our  preachers  of 
Washington  and  a  large  company  from  Mt.  Vernon 
Place  Church  of  that  city,  and  a  host  of  ministers  of 
the  three  Methodisms  of  Baltimore  and  elsewhere, 
the  three  Methodisms  uniting  in  the  services  to 
honor  the  life  and  character  of  the  Bishop  with 
Bishop  E.  R.  Hendrix,  Senior  Bishop  of  our  Church 
in  charge.  Bishop  Atkins  had  left  a  Conference  to 
come  to  the  service,  arriving  at  the  church  at  two 
o'clock,  and  returning  by  a  train  that  went  south  at 
five. 

Dr.  F.  T.  Tagg,  of  the  Methodist  Protestant 
Church,  made  a  tender  prayer  at  the  home  before  the 
funeral  cortege  went  to  the  church.  Rev.  John 
Paul  Tyler,  a  former  pastor  and  intimate  friend,  oc- 
cupied a  seat  with  the  family  in  the  brief  service  at 
the  home  and  the  public  service  in  the  church. 

Rev.  W.  H.  Best,  the  pastor  of  Trinity,  read  the 
solemn  words  of  the  ritual  beginning  with  "I  know 
that  my  Redeemer  liveth,  "  as  the  funeral  procession 
moved  down  the  aisle  of  the  historic  church. 

After  an  organ  prelude,  "Flee  as  a  Bird,"  Mr. 
Everett  Blake  sang  Bishop  Wilson's  favorite  hymn, 
"The  God  of  Abraham  Praise.  "  The  first  Scripture 
lesson  was  read  by  Rev.  E.  V.  Regester,  a  former 
pastor,  and  the  second  by  Dr.  F.  J.  Prettyman, 
chaplain  of  the  United  States  Senate.  "Rock  of 
Ages"  was  announced  by  Bishop  James  Atkins,  and 
prayer  was  offered  by  Dr.  T.  H.  Lewis,  president  of 
the  Western  Maryland  College.  Addresses  were 
made  by  Bishop  Hendrix,  and  Bishops  Earl  Cranston 


199 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


and  Luther  B.  Wilson,  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  and  by  Rev.  B.  W.  Bond,  D.  D.,  presiding 
elder  of  the  Alexandria  District,  and  Rev.  John  O. 
Willson,  D.  D.,  president  of  Lander  College,  Green- 
wood, S.  C.  Both  Dr.  Bond  and  Dr.  Willson  had  been 
life-long  friends  of  Bishop  Wilson. 

These  addresses  are  reproduced  in  part.  The 
tributes  the  speakers  paid  to  Bishop  Wilson's  preach- 
ing are  omitted  in  this  connection  as  they  appear  in 
another  chapter. 

After  "Asleep  in  Jesus  "  was  sung,  the  benediction 
was  pronounced  by  Bishop  John  W.  Hamilton,  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

The  services  at  Loudon  Park  Cemetery  were  con- 
ducted by  Rev.  D.  H.  Kern,  D.  D.,  presiding  elder  of 
the  Baltimore  District,  assisted  by  Rev.  John  A. 
Anderson,  presiding  elder  of  the  Winchester  District, 
by  Rev.  W.  H.  Best  and  Rev.  CD.  Harris. 

The  active  pallbearers  were  six  of  the  city  pastors 
—Revs.  T.  J.  Lambert,  C.  M.  Hesser,  W.  P.  John- 
ston, J.  W.  Smith,  G.  G.  Oliver  and  W.  C.  Boswell. 
The  honorary  pallbearers  were  Rev.  Drs.  B.  W. 
Bond,  J.  A.  Anderson,  L  W.  Canter,  Charles  W. 
Baldwin,  J.  St.  Clair  Neal,  H.  L.  Hout,  J.  J.  Ringer, 
E.  K.  Hardin,  F.  T.  Tagg,  H.  M.  Willson;  Messrs. 
E.  B.  Magruder,  R.  G.  Mowbray,  L.  W.  Davis,  F. 
E.  Bond,  J.  E.  Norwood,  C.  E.  MuUer  and  C.  M. 
Armstrong. 


200 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


EXTRACTS  FROM  THE  ADDRESSES. 


Bishop  Hendrix. 

"A  devout  man  was  Stephen,  and  when  he  died  his 
followers  made  great  lamentation  over  him.  It  was  be- 
cause his  life  had  been  cut  prematurely  short.  It  had  been 
concentrated  into  only  one  great  sermon.  It  was  like  the 
century  plant.  It  spent  itself  in  one  noble  effort,  in 
which  the  whole  life  is  given.  The  chtirch  well  felt  that 
there  was  more  back  of  that,  more  of  preaching,  more 
of  service,  and  no  doubt  the  lamentations  were  deep  and 
widespread  and  sincere  because  the  young  life  had  been 
cut  short.  Our  Lord  never  raised  an  old  man  from  the 
dead,  always  young  men  and  young  women.  When  they 
had  rounded  out  their  life — three  score  and  ten,  or  four 
score — He  was  not  going  to  bring  them  back  to  life  to  take 
up  their  duties  again.  They  rest  in  peace.  But  the  little 
girl  of  twelve,  the  widow's  son,  the  young  man  whom  the 
mother  needed,  and  the  noble  brother  of  those  two  pre- 
cious sisters  of  Bethany  were  called  back  to  live,  to  take  up 
their  work,  and  to  do  more  in  their  later  life  than  ever  be- 
fore, for  it  was  said  of  Lazarus  that  many  came  to  see 
Lazarus  whom  Jesus  had  raised  from  the  dead,  and  to 
hear  the  testimony  of  his  life  and  of  his  words  all  through 
his  life  whose  eyes  had  twice  looked  on  death. 

"There  was  another  man  of  whom  it  was  said — having 
served  his  generation  by  the  will  of  God  he  had  fallen  on 
sleep.  David  in  the  fulness  of  his  years  was  laid  to  rest,  and 
that  sleep  was  unbroken,  for  he  had  rounded  out  his  life  as 
a  man  of  God's  own  heart.  So,  today,  we  do  not  make 
great  lamentation  over  our  sainted  brother.  He  has 
served  his  generation,  nay,  two  generations,  by  the  will  of 
God,  and  he  has  fallen  on  sleep  after  sLxty-four  years  as  a 
record  of  his  wonderful  ministry.  Two  generations  are  in- 
debted to  him  for  his  marvelous  preaching.  He  deserves 
to  rest  in  peace.  We  would  not  call  him  back,  if  we  could, 
for  his  weary  years  are  ended,  and  he  is  in  the  bosom  of 
God.  We  know  where  to  find  him.  Bishop  Wilson  has 
fallen  in  a  war  in  which  there  is  no  surcease,  but  whose  out- 

201 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


come  cannot  be  questioned,  and  his  is  the  crown,  and  his 
is  the  throne,  for  he  shared  it  with  his  Lord.  The  church 
is  the  only  thing  that  endure th. 

"In  this  hour  of  peciiliar  serenity  and  peace,  we  re- 
joice in  Him  in  whom  he  beUeved  and  in  whom  we  beHeve, 
the  Captain  of  our  salvation,  the  Lord  of  our  conduct,  our 
faith,  oiu"  life. 

"  Alpheus  Waters  Wilson  was  a  child  of  Baltimore,  bom 
in  this  city  eighty-two  years  ago.  He  gave  much  of  his 
great  life  to  this  city.  This  church  where  we  meet  today 
is  the  fruit  of  his  labor.  Many  other  churches  in  this  city 
and  in  this  Conference  shared  his  activities,  and  it  is  in  a 
peculiar  sense  the  privilege  of  Baltimore  to  receive  today 
his  hallowed  dust. 

"Alpheus  Waters  Wilson  was  a  four-fold  man.  It  was 
said  of  Michael  Angelo  that  he  was  four  men  in  one — a 
great  architect,  a  great  sculptor,  a  great  painter  and  a 
great  poet.  It  is  said  that  great  men  are  not  so  different 
from  ordinary  m^en,  except  that  there  is  so  much  more  of 
them.  John  Wesley  was  one  of  those  known  as  a  four-fold 
man,  in  so  much  that  you  can  make  a  life  of  him  as  a 
traveler,  3^ou  can  make  a  life  of  him  as  a  preacher,  you  can 
make  a  life  of  him  as  an  organizer  alone,  and  you  could 
make  a  Hfe  of  him  as  a  wonderful  writer  of  books  alone — ■ 
author,  preacher,  organizer,  traveler — what  a  four-fold 
life  was  there. 

"Alpheus  Waters  Wilson  led  such  a  life  as  that — first 
of  all,  a  humble,  devoted,  convinced  believer  in  our  Lord 
and  Savior  Jesus  Christ — he  might  well  say :  '  For  me  to 
live  is  Christ.'  The  genuineness  of  his  faith,  the  devout- 
ness  of  his  spirit,  his  well-grounded  trust  in  God,  every- 
where showed  him  a  true  believer  whose  life  ran  out  into 
marvelous  activities,  whose  faith  abounded  unto  life  ever- 
lasting. We  knew  him  as  such.  We  had  communion  with 
him  in  the  private  places  of  worship,  in  the  sweet  fellow- 
ship of  council.  We  honored  him  as  a  brother  beloved  of 
the  Lord. 

"He  was  widely  known  as  a  preacher.  Especially  was 
he  known  for  his  sermon  on  the  '  Church  in  the  Mind  of 


202 


KATE  LEAR 
Cook  in  Bishop  Wilson's  household  for  forty  years 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


God, '  a  wonderful  line  of  thought.  It  was  published  after 
a  careful  stenographic  report. 

"Alpheus  Waters  Wilson  for  thirty-four  years  made  a 
great  bishop,  fitted  for  this  work  by  long  experience,  by  his 
great  power  of  intellect,  the  great  riches  of  his  heart  and 
his  \\'ill,  he  led  the  hosts  of  Israel.  And  for  the  last  sixteen 
years,  as  our  Senior  Bishop,  he  was  honored  and  loved  and 
revered  by  the  whole  church.  With  the  knowledge  of  men , 
with  the  courage  to  do  his  duty,  with  a  singleness  of  pur- 
pose, with  a  conception  of  the  needs  of  the  church,  he 
wrought  faithful!}^  and  well,  and  like  Moses  he  could  well 
pray:  'Establish  thou  the  work  of  our  hands  upon  us, 
yea,  the  work  of  our  hands  establish  thou  it. ' 

"We  lay  him  to  rest  today,  one  of  the  great  citizens  of 
this  commonwealth,  of  which  he  was  a  native,  and  of  this 
country  of  which  he  was  an  honored  citizen. 

"Bishop  Wilson  is  widely  known  as  a  man  of  God,  as  a 
great  preacher,  as  a  wonderful  organizer — a  commanding 
Bishop  of  the  church,  he  sleeps  today  honored  of  his 
brethren,  loved  of  all  men. 

"We  recognize  the  mellowing  influence  of  time  on  his 
character.  He  grew  more  and  more  tender  as  he  grew 
older.  His  colleague  for  thirty  years,  I  have  known  him 
well,  and  I  have  many  dear  memories  of  his  love.  Just 
three  weeks  ago  in  parting  from  me,  he  said,  affectionately : 
'  I  pray  for  you  every  day.  I  will  probably  never  see  you 
again.  The  sands  are  running  out.  My  time  is  well  nigh 
come.' 

"And  so  today  we  lay  him  to  rest,  amid  our  tears. 
Thank  God  for  Alpheus  Wilson.  Thank  God  for  his 
honored  father,  thank  God  for  his  noble  wife  who  helped 
so  much  to  make  him  what  he  was  to  God  and  to  the 
church." 

Bishop  Earl  Cranston. 

"Sisters  and  brothers,  it  has  fittingly  fallen  to  Brother 
Hendrix  to  characterize  in  the  way  he  has  the  work  and 
service  of  Bishop  Wilson. 

"  I  don't  want  to  appear  exactly  as  a  representative  of 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.     I  know  that  I  must 

203 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


speak  for  my  colleagues  here,  and  I  know  that  I  must  tell 
of  the  high  esteem  in  which  Bishop  Wilson  was  held  by  all 
the  ministry  of  our  church  and  by  the  people  of  our  church 
who  knew  his  work.  I  don't  believe  there  will  be  any 
feeling  other  than  that  one  of  our  own  has  gone,  and  I  am 
telling  no  secret  when  I  say  to  you  that  myself  and  my 
colleagues  in  the  episcopal  office  have  made  it  almost  a 
promise  between  us  that  we  shall  pray  every  day  for  each 
other  and  also  for  the  members  of  your  College  of  Bishops, 
and  it  seems  to  us  as  if  one  of  our  own  number  has  gone. 

"To  you,  my  brethren  of  the  chiu-ch  that  he  loved,  I 
bring  the  sympathy  of  our  ministry.  I  know  what  you 
thought  of  him,  at  least,  I  think  I  do. 

"Never  did  I  see  the  touch  of  man  upon  man,  the 
embrace  of  man  upon  nmn,  when  it  moved  me  more  than 
when  I  saw  Bishop  Wilson  was  leaving  us  at  Chattanooga. 
He  had  given  us  a  most  wonderful  address,  teaching  his 
loyalty  to  all  that  he  believed  and  to  his  people,  full  of 
faith  in  God.  When  he  started  to  leave,  his  worthy  col- 
leagues in  the  Episcopate  gathered  abouthim,  threw  their 
arms  about  his  shoulders  and  embraced  him. 

Bishop  Luther  B.  Wilson. 

"It  seems  strange  to  stand  here  and  Bishop  Wilson  to 
be  lying  there.  As  Bishop  Hendrix  has  said,  I  have  known 
Bishop  Wilson  as  long  as  I  have  known  anyone,  almost, 
and  I  have  revered  him  as  long  as  I  have  known  him,  and 
my  love  for  him  has  deepened  with  the  years.  To  me  he 
stands  out  quite  apart  from  the  brotherhood  devoted  to 
Jesus  Christ  and  to  the  spread  of  His  gospel  among  men. 
It  has  all  been  said  here  this  afternoon.  But  I  sat  and 
Hstened  to  him  again  and  again,  listened  to  him  in  those 
golden  days  when  the  sunlight  came  through  the  trees,  and 
in  silence  the  multitudes  hung  upon  his  words. 

"I  pay  the  tribute  of  my  love  to  him  this  afternoon. 
As  a  great  churchman  he  belonged  to  a  goodly  fellowship, 
but  as  I  have  thought  of  him  and  as  I  have  thought  of 
those  who  went  before  him,  it  seems  to  me  that  he  comes 
nearer  to  that  fine  type  of  ecclesiastical  statesmanship  than 
is  represented  to  us  by  any  other  than  Joshua  Soule — a 

204 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


man  of  the  same  order  of  mind,  and  with  the  same  keenness 
of  analysis,  and  with  the  same  calmness  of  synthesis  also 
as  this  man  of  God,  this  prince  of  our  common  Israel  today. 
As  I  think  of  Joshua  Soule  today  so  I  think  of  Bishop  Wil- 
son. 

"I  cannot  test  3^our  patience,  but  as  I  sat  here,  I 
thought  of  what  after  all  must  have  been  the  essential 
thing  in  the  fashioning  of  such  a  preacher,  in  the  making  of 
such  a  master  of  assemblies,  in  the  arm  of  one  so  keen  in 
his  power  to  construct,  and  so  well  able  for  that  con- 
structive policy  to  which  he  gave  himself,  and  it  seems  to 
me  that  the  logic  of  the  mind  was  like  the  logic  of  his  heart, 
like  the  logic  of  his  life.  You  who  knew  him,  you  who  knew 
him  through  the  days,  like  the  common  days  and  then  the 
golden  days  and  the  epochal  days,  you  who  knew  him 
know  this  of  him,  that  he  was  a  follower  of  the  Lord,  just 
as  certainly  as  Israel  in  the  olden  day  followed  the  pillar 
of  fire,  so  he  followed  the  pillar  of  fire  and  of  cloud,  just  as 
evidently  as  in  that  old  day  when  our  diademed  Lord 
touched  that  great  apostle  to  the  Gentiles,  and  in  a  moment 
fired  the  mind  and  heart  of  that  apostle  with  warring  de- 
votion to  Himself,  so  that  same  Master  spoke  to  him,  and 
so  to  that  same  Master,  his  heart  and  mind  and  life  were 
pledged  in  an  avowal  as  unmistakable  and  as  loyally 
maintained.  I  think  of  that  apostle  whom  he  loved,  and 
with  whom  he  had  such  characteristic  fellowship.  I  have 
been  thinking  of  the  words  that  we  heard  read  here  this 
afternoon:  'Therefore,  my  beloved  brethren,  be  ye 
steadfast,  unmovable,  always  abounding  in  the  work  of  the 
Lord,  forasmuch  as  ye  know  that  your  labor  is  not  in  vain 
in  the  Lord. ' 

"Therefore,  the  life  of  this  great  servant  of  the  Lord, 
the  genuineness  of  this  great  servant  of  God  is  a  logical 
sequence  to  the  things  that  he  believed  and  knew.  Living 
as  I  have  been  privileged  to  live,  where  I  saw  him  now  and 
again,  and  still  more  frequently  heard  of  him,  knowing  of 
those  days  of  physical  weakness  that  sometimes  came  to 
him,  and  that  multiplied  in  the  latter  years,  I  have  come 
to  feel  almost  as  though  Death  would  find  it  difficult  to 
overtake  this  gre^t  man,  Death  would  find  it  difficult  to 


205 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


master  this  servant  of  the  King.  And  it  seemed  to  me 
that  when  he  went  away  he  had  defied  death,  he  had  out- 
run death.  Death  came  so  near  to  him  that  reaching 
after  him  death  grasped  his  mantle,  but  the  nmner  has 
entered  through  the  gates  into  the  city,  and  he  shall  not 
see  death.  And  as  I  think  of  Bishop  Wilson  absent  from 
the  body  and  present  with  the  Lord,  it  seems  to  me  that 
the  memory  of  his  life  with  its  vision  and  with  its  victories 
shall  come  to  steady  our  steps  as  we  go  on  our  way.  If 
the  memory  of  the  just  is  blessed,  how  blessed  the  memory 
of  this  life.  And  if  sorrow  possess  us  when  we  part,  how 
glad  shall  be  the  day  when  in  the  presence  of  the  King 
and  of  that  glorious  company  that  I  think  must  already 
have  gathered  at  the  gates  to  greet  him,  we  shall  see  his 
King,  and  the  great  miiltitude,  and  shall  see  again  the 
face  of  this  man  of  God,  faithful  unto  death,  and  devoted 
with  the  last  energy  of  his  life.  May  it  be  so,  and  may  his 
mantle  fall  upon  us. " 

Dr.  B.  W.  Bond. 

"I  do  not  need  to  say  anything  in  regard  to  the  great- 
ness of  Bishop  Wilson  in  his  official  work.  I  will  simply 
say  something  as  to  his  private  character.  I  have  known 
him  nearly  all  my  life,  and  closely  so  many  years.  I  have 
always  found  him  the  same  true,  sincere,  simple-hearted 
man.  I  have  known  him  in  his  official  capacity,  never 
swerving  from  the  straight  line,  never  failing  in  his  desire 
and  effort  to  be  true,  and  doing  everything  in  every  way 
that  he  could  to  promote  the  welfare  of  those  about  him, 
those  that  came  to  him.  I  would  speak  of  his  unfailing 
courtesy,  kindness  of  spirit,  and  sympathy  for  all  with 
w^hom  he  came  in  contact.  In  private  life  he  was  one 
among  thousands,  one  altogether  filled  with  God's  spirit, 
desiring  to  benefit  all  with  whom  he  came  in  contact. 
This  was  not  only  to  all  those  who  were  in  fellowship  with 
hrm  in  church  relationship,  but  as  it  happened  to  me  be- 
fore I  was  a  preacher,  or  even  a  member  of  the  church.  In 
the  troublous  days  of  1864  he  did  me  a  kindness  at  risk  to 
himself,  without  any  obligation  on  his  part  whatsoever. 
It  is  not  meet  that  I  should  go  into  details  at  this  time,  but 

206 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


there  was  danger  to  him  and  his  family,  and  yet  without 
any  hesitation  whatever,  and  without  making  any  to  do 
about  it,  he  simply  did  this  kindly  act  for  me.  In  after 
years  I  had  the  pri\Hilege  of  sharing  his  ministiy  regularly 
at  the  old  Emmanuel  Church  of  this  city,  where  he  labored 
for  a  time  after  he  had  retired  from  the  active  work  of  the 
ministry,  but  he  filled  that  place,  and  it  was  the  memory  of 
that  occasion  in  1864  that  never  left  me,  that  drew  me  to 
him  and  his  ministry,  and  though  I  did  not  join  the  church 
or  profess  religion  for  some  time,  yet  it  was  his  ministry 
which  I  felt  brought  me  at  last  to  the  foot  of  the  cross,  and 
the  fellowship  in  the  glory  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  He 
was  full  of  sympathy  and  kindness  in  all  the  relations  of 
life,  in  his  private  character  and  in  his  official  capacity. 
He  was  my  friend.  He  honored  me  with  his  friendship  and 
love,  and  I  feel  that  I  have  lost  a  father  indeed,  this  day, 
and  I  pray  that  by  God's  grace  I  will  see  him  again  and  I 
will  meet  him  in  the  better  land. " 

Dr.  J.  O.  WiLLSON. 

"  It  would  be  selfish  for  me  to  speak  for  myself,  rather 
I  would  speak  for  South  Carolina — the  state  of  William 
Wightman,  of  Coke  Smith,  of  John  Kilgo,  the  state  from 
which  came  the  first  missionary  abroad  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church,  South,  and  the  state  where  Stephen 
Olin  was  bom. 

"From  the  year  1878,  when  Bishop  Wilson  came  to 
South  Carolina,  to  the  last  day  he  spent  there,  that  man 
held  our  hearts  and  minds,  and  led  us  wheresoever  he 
pleased.  I  am  not  speaking  alone  for  the  Methodists  of 
South  Carolina,  though  they  loved  him  with  a  surpassing 
love,  but  I  am  speaking  of  those  of  other  communions  and 
other  churches  who  heard  him,  and  who  gave  him.  their 
hearts,  and  more  and  more  were  taught  by  him  to  love 
God. 

"There  is  no  question  about  the  greatness  of  Bishop 
Wilson.  He  was  the  greatest  preacher  that  I  ever  heard 
or  ever  expect  to  hear,  and  I  have  heard  many  great 
preachers,  and  '  never  a  man  spake  like  this  man. '  I  trust 
the  quotation  is  not  sacrilegious.     But  he  spake  for  his 

207 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


Lord,  and  spake  like  his  Lord's  servant,  that  wonderful 
apostle  to  the  Gentiles. 

"  I  will  not  take  your  time  to  talk  about  him,  for  living 
here  as  you  have  lived,  you  must  know  him,  perhaps  a 
little  better  than  I  did,  though  I  am  not  sure  of  that.  One 
thing  I  charge  you  to  remember,  you  Baltimoreans,  and 
all  the  rest  of  you,  love  him  as  you  may,  you  cannot  love 
him  more  than  South  Carolina,  honor  him  as  you  must, 
you  cannot  honor  him  more  than  the  people  of  the  Palmet- 
to State,  for  in  the  length  and  breadth  of  our  little  com- 
monwealth the  name  of  Alpheus  Waters  Wilson  is  a  name 
that  is  set  above  and  apart  from  all  other  names. 

"I  had  the  privilege  of  having  the  great  Bishop  visit 
me  for  nearly  a  week  just  a  few  weeks  ago.  This  is  the 
reason  why  I  take  up  your  time  at  all.  I  heard  the  last 
sermon  that  Bishop  Wilson  spoke,  before  he  went  home, 
and  in  shaking  hands  wdth  him,  I  looked  into  the  face  of 
Him  whom  he  and  Paul  loved  with  a  wonderful  love.  He 
came  to  my  home  on  the  8th  day  of  November,  and  he  was 
not  as  strong  as  I  would  have  liked  to  find  him,  and  it  was 
a  pleasiu-e  to  minister  to  him,  and  a  pleasure  when  he  left 
me  the  following  Monday  to  see  he  was  stronger  than  when 
he  came.  Indeed,  it  was  a  great  shock  to  hear  of  his 
death,  for  he  was  stronger  than  when  with  me  a  year  ago. 

"On  Sunday,  the  12th  of  November,  we  went  down 
together  to  the  church  in  Greenwood,  South  Carolina. 
He  did  not  tell  me  what  he  was  going  to  preach  about.  I 
had  not  asked  him .  He  took  his  text  from  the  first  chapter 
of  the  book  of  Colossians:  'Whereof  I  am  made  a  minis- 
ter, according  to  the  dispensation  of  God,  which  is  given  to 
me  for  you,  to  fulfill  the  word  of  God;  even  the  mystery 
which  hath  been  hid  from  ages  and  from  generations,  but 
now  is  made  manifest  to  his  saints. '  I  wish  you  could 
have  seen  his  expression  as  he  said  that  'To  whom  God 
would  make  known  what  is  the  riches  of  the  glory  of  this 
mystery  among  the  Gentiles;  which  is  Christ  in  you,  the 
hope  of  glory. ' 

"Right  now,  this  very  moment  that  we  are  thinking  of 
him,  he  is  with  the  Lord,  and  looking  into  the  face  of  Jesus, 
and  he  is  telling  Jesus  all  the  things  that  are  in  his  head  and 

208 


ALPHEUS  W.  WILSON 


his  heart,  and  he  is  worshiping  and  loving  Him  as  fev/  can 
worship  and  few  can  love. 

"Farewell,  my  dear  old  friend  whom  I  love,  and  whom 
all  of  us  love.  Farewell  imtil  we  meet  again  in  the  city  of 
God." 

Many  high  tributes  have  been  paid  the  life  and 
character  of  Bishop  Wilson  by  those  who  knew  him 
well  and  many  papers  extolling  his  marvelous  ca- 
reer have  been  adopted  by  ecclesiastical  bodies,  but  I 
question  whether  any  of  them  do  him  full  justice. 
We  of  the  present  have  Hved  too  close  to  this  towering 
personality  to  get  the  proper  perspective  for  measur- 
ing his  real  greatness.  13 nlike  most  men,  he  will  loom 
larger  with  the  passing  years.  He  is  destined  to  be 
recognized  as  a  great  historical  character  that  has 
been  a  tremendous  factor  in  shaping  the  history  of 
Methodism  on  this  continent  and  in  the  regions  be- 
yond. In  a  half  century  or  more  men  will  be  better 
able  to  place  a  true  value  on  the  mighty  influence  and 
power  of  this  man,  who  lived,  moved,  and  had  his 
being  in  the  midst  of  us. 


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